Never let your card out of your sight.....check and check again!

Be sure to read Scene 3 carefully. Quite interesting. 
This is a new one. People sure stay busy trying to cheat us, don't they?   
 SCENE 1.  
A friend went to the local gym and placed his belongings in the locker. After the workout and a shower, he came out, saw the locker open, 
and thought to himself, 'Funny, I thought I locked the locker..
 Hmm, 'He dressed and just flipped the wallet to make sure all was in order. 
 Everything looked okay - all cards were in place�
 A few weeks later his credit card bill came - a whooping bill of $14,000! 
 He called the credit card company and started yelling at them, saying that he did not make the transactions. 
 Customer care personnel verified that there was no mistake in the system and asked if his card had been stolen� 
 'No,' he said, but then took out his wallet, pulled out the credit card, and yep - you guessed it - a switch had been made.
 An expired similar credit card from the same bank was in the wallet. 
 The thief broke into his locker at the gym and switched cards. 
 Verdict: The credit card issuer said since he did not report the card missing earlier, he would have to pay the amount owed to them. 
 How much did he have to pay for items he did not buy?  
 $9,000! Why were there no calls made to verify the amount swiped? 
Small amounts rarely trigger a 'warning bell' with some credit card companies. 
It just so happens that all the small amounts added up to big one!  
============================
 SCENE 2.  
A man at a local restaurant paid for his meal with his credit card. 
 The bill for the meal came, he signed it and the waitress folded the receipt and passed the credit card along. 
 Usually, he would just take it and place it in his wallet or pocket. Funny enough, though, he actually took a look at the card and, lo and behold, it was the expired card of another person. 
 He called the waitress and she looked perplexed. 
 She took it back, apologized, and hurried back to the counter under the watchful eye of the man. 
 All the waitress did while walking to the counter was wave the wrong expired card to the counter cashier, and the counter cashier immediately looked down and took out the real card. 
 No exchange of words --- nothing! She took it and came back to the man with an apology.. 
 Verdict: 
 Make sure the credit cards in your wallet are yours. 
 Check the name on the card every time you sign for something and/or the card is taken away for even a short period of time. 
 Many people just take back the credit card without even looking at it, 'assuming' that it has to be theirs. 
 
 FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DEVELOP THE HABIT OF CHECKING YOUR CREDIT CARD EACH TIME IT IS RETURNED TO YOU AFTER A TRANSACTION! 
========================== 
 SCENE 3:  
Yesterday I went into a pizza restaurant to pick up an order that I had called in. 
 I paid by using my Visa Check Card which, of course, is linked directly to my checking account. 
 The young man behind the counter took my card, swiped it then laid it on the counter as he waited for the approval, which is pretty standard procedure� 
 While he waited, he picked up his cell phone and started dialing. 
 I noticed the phone because it is the same model I have, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. ? Then I heard a click that sounded like my phone sounds when I take a picture. 
 He then gave me back my card but kept the phone in his hand as if he was still pressing buttons. 
 Meanwhile, I'm thinking: I wonder what he is taking a picture of, oblivious to what was really going on. 
 It then dawned on me: the only thing there was my credit card, so now I'm paying close attention to what he is doing�
 He set his phone on the counter, leaving it open. 
 About five seconds later, I heard the chime that tells you that the picture has been saved. 
 Now I'm standing there struggling with the fact that this boy just took a picture of my credit card. 
 Yes, he played it off well, because had we not had the same kind of phone, I probably would never have known what happened. 
 Needless to say, I immediately cancelled that card as I was walking out of the pizza parlor. 
 All I am saying is be aware of your surroundings at all times. 
 Whenever you are using your credit card take caution and don't be careless. 
 
 Notice who is standing near you and what they are doing when you use your card. 
 Be aware of phones, because many have a camera phone these days.


Hat Tip; Kack

Gumboro Mudbog "Support For The Wounded Soldiers At Walter Reed Hospital"

There will be more photos and video later today of the charity event from the Gumboro Mudbog yesterday.

GUMBORO -- An estimated 2,000 people drove their souped-up trucks, four-wheelers or just everyday cars to the small town of Gumboro on Saturday to watch mud fly at the Gumboro Mud Bog.

As one of the four events held in Gumboro this year, volunteer Allen Jones said it's amazing to see how much it's grown in its seven years of existence.

"Sometimes you just sit back and remember when there was 50, 60 people here," he said. "Now, you see (thousands)."

Saturday's race was Gumboro Mud Bog's annual charity event, which organizer Ray Ellis said was likely the big reason for the huge draw. All money collected from Saturday's $7 admission will be donated this Christmas to the soldiers at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington.

While the attendance numbers may have been given a boost by the charity drive, longtime mud bogger Wesley Townsend of Crisfield said interest in the sport has been on the rise. Townsend also races at a track in his hometown.

"From the looks of the crowd here and the looks of the crowd in Crisfield, it looks like everybody wants (mud bogging) to come back," he said. "It just keeps getting bigger and bigger."

Townsend started racing in the late 1980s when the sport was at a peak in popularity. At the time, he said there were five different mud bog venues on the Eastern Shore. Interest and participation dropped in the 1990s, but has started to pick up again recently, he said.

"I was into it in the late '80s, early '90s, but then got away from it and grew up," he said. "Then my nephew brought me back and the bug bit me ... again."

Gumboro Mud Bog features three 200-foot pits designed for the seven different classes of trucks racing. According to Ellis, the objective of the race is to be the fastest in the class to drive completely through the pit.

If no one reaches the end, the truck that achieved the longest distance is crowned champion.

The classes are determined by the truck and tire size. Ellis said tires typically range from the common 31-inch tire to a tractor tire.

Although the Gumboro Mud Bog is organized by Ellis, it was truly created by his two sons.

"(Ray's son) and his friends wanted to see who had the baddest truck, so they built a pit," he said. "Well, the pit got bigger and the pit got longer. Every weekend, they would come and more buddies would want to try it out. It just kept bigger and bigger."

Eventually crowds started trickling in, and the rest is history.

http://www.delmarvanow.com/

"Restoring Honor" Rally

Glenn Beck lamented the "garish light of America today" at his "Restoring Honor" rally Saturday, saying it was time to reverse course from "what we've allowed ourselves to become."

Speaking at the Lincoln Memorial 47 years to the day after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech in the same spot, Beck said, "Something beyond imagination is happening."

"Something that is beyond man is happening," Beck told his enthusiastic audience at the planned three-hour rally. "America today begins to turn back to God. For too long, this country has wandered in darkness."

Said an impassioned Beck: "Are we so pessimistic that we no longer believe in the individual, and the power of the individual? Do we no longer believe in dreams?"

"One man can change the world!" he stated, telling members of the audience that they must take up that charge.

Approximately 87,000 people attended the rally, according to a crowd estimate commissioned by CBS News. The estimate was made using aerial photos taken at noon, which was judged to be the height of the event. The estimate has a margin of error of 9,000 people.

Crowds gathered for the event stretched from the Lincoln Memorial all the way to the World War II Memorial. One person held a cardboard cutout of President Obama and asked people what they would tell him, CBS News' Fernando Suarez reports. One man said he'd punch the president in the face, while another said he'd take Mr. Obama to jail.

For the most part, however, the crowd was calm. Beck had asked his supporters not to bring political signs to the event, which was ostensibly non-political (despite the presence of Sarah Palin, among others). Most of the assembled crowd complied, opting for American flags instead of political messages.

Beck, at times near tears, said that heroes like Abraham Lincoln and George Washington had disappeared from American life, but that the next generation of those heroes were in the crowd, and were the children of those who had come to an event he had compared to Woodstock.

Palin, speaking near the start of the event, said, "We stand today at the symbolic crossroads of our nation's history."

"May this day be the change point," she said. "Look around you. You're not alone. You are Americans!"

Beck would go on to oversee the awarding of the "badge of merit" to three Americans he cast as modern-day heroes, among them an African-American pastor who called Beck a "servant of God."St. Louis Cardinals Manager Tony La Russa introduced Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols, the recipient of the "badge of merit for hope," who discussed his faith in Jesus.

The event often seemed like a religious service, with a pastors offering prayers and Beck and other speakers peppering their comments and songs with references to God. A large wooden cross could be seen in the crowd, and Beck implored attendees to let their children see them pray.

"This day is a day that we can start the heart of America again, and it has nothing to do with politics, it has everything to do with God," Beck said, arguing that God had been sending Americans "wake-up calls," including the Sept. 11 attacks.

"We must be better than what we've allowed ourselves to become," he said. "We must get the poison of hatred out of us...we must look to God and look to love."

A Mormon, Beck asked attendees to tithe ten percent of their incomes and said it is "my joy and my honor" to do so.

In addition to "restoring honor," the event was designed to honor members of the military, which Beck said was one of the few institutions that Americans continue to trust.

"Our fighting men and women do the things that most of us don't even want to think about," he said, before introducing speakers from (and asking for donations in support of) the Special Operations Warrior Foundation.

Al Sharpton was hosting a much smaller "Reclaim the Dream" counter-rally as the Beck rally went on at the Lincoln Memorial. Sharpton told CBS News yesterday that Beck is trying to "hijack" the civil rights movement.

Near the World War II memorial, a few protesters stood holding signs protesting Beck's rally. One sign said, "Glenn Beck is a F'king Racist. Another said, "DC Does NOT Hate." Beck has suggested that President Obama is a racist.

Another protester holding a sign deeming King a "dream" and Beck a "nightmare" got into a screaming match with a Beck supporter who said she is tired of living under communism.

Midway through the rally, Beck showed a video hailing King and introduced Alveda King, King's niece. Alveda King gave an emotionally charged speech calling for, among other things, prayer in schools.

Beck said King's dream was the dream of all Americans. Though the audience at the event was overwhelmingly white, many of the speakers were African-American, including a woman who sang a song about unity.

Beck insisted he is not a "fearmonger" as, he noted, some have suggested. He said that while he talks "about frightening things," he is no different than the man on the Titanic who first saw the iceberg and yelled out a warning.

Beck read Lincoln's Gettysburg Address at one point and repeatedly invoked the Founding Fathers in his remarks. He said he and the assembled crowd were standing on "a great battlefield with warriors on each side."

"America is at a crossroads, and today we must decide, 'Who are we? What is it that we believe?'" Beck said. "We must advance or perish. I choose advance."

Beck said that the event will be "meaningless" if the "wake-up call" he was offering fades after the day ends. But if people let the day be a turning point, he said, "we will change the world."

"It is time to start the heart of this nation again and put it where it belongs - our heart with God," said Beck. He added: "The truth will set you free."

www.cbsnews.com

545 vs. 300,000,000

This is about as clear and easy to understand as it can be - read it!!  The article below is completely neutral, not anti republican or democrat.  Charlie Reese, a retired reporter for the Orlando Sentinal has hit the nail directly on the head, defining clearly who it is that in the final analysis must assume responsibility for the judgments made that impact each one of us every day.  It's a short but good read.  Worth the time.  Worth remembering!

    545 vs. 300,000,000

    EVERY  CITIZEN NEEDS TO READ THIS AND THINK ABOUT WHAT THIS JOURNALIST HAS  SCRIPTED IN THIS MESSAGE.  READ IT  AND THEN REALLY THINK ABOUT  OUR CURRENT POLITICAL DEBACLE.

    

        545  PEOPLE--By Charlie Reese

        Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them..

        Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?

        Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes,WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

        You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.

        You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

        You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

        You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

        You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

        One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

        I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

        I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a President to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

        Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

        What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating  deficits.....   The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

        The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? Nancy Pelosi. She is the leader of the majority party. She and fellow House members, not the President, can approve any budget they want.  If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

        It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal  government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to  exist.

        If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

        If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red ..

        If the Army & Marines are in  Iraq  and Afghanistan it's because they want them in Iraq and Afghanistan...

        If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

        There are no insoluble government problems.

        Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

        Those 545 people, and they  alone, are responsible.

        They, and they alone, have the power..

        They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.

        Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees...

        We should vote all of  them out of office and clean up their mess!

        Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando  Sentinel  Newspaper.

        What you do with this article now that you have read it......... Is up to you.

        This might be funny if it weren't so  true.

        Be sure to read all the way to the end:

        Tax his land,

        Tax his bed,

        Tax the table,

    At which he's fed.

    Tax his tractor,

    Tax his mule,

    Teach him taxes

    Are the rule.

    Tax his work,

    Tax his pay,

    He works for peanuts anyway!

    Tax his cow,

    Tax his goat,

    Tax his pants,

    Tax his coat.

    Tax his ties,

    Tax his shirt,

    Tax his work,

    Tax his dirt.

    Tax his tobacco,

    Tax his drink,

    Tax him if he

    Tries to think.

    Tax his cigars,

    Tax his beers,

    If he cries

    Tax his tears.

    Tax his car,

    Tax his gas,

    Find other ways

    To tax his ass.

    Tax all he has

    Then let him know

    That you won't be done

    Till he has no dough.

    When he screams and hollers;

    Then tax him some more,

    Tax him till

    He's good and sore.

    Then tax his coffin,

    Tax his grave,

    Tax the sod in

    Which he's laid...

    Put these words

    Upon his tomb,

    Taxes drove me

    to my doom...'

    When he's gone,

    Do not relax,

    Its time to apply

    The inheritance tax..

Accounts Receivable Tax
Building Permit Tax
CDL license Tax
Cigarette Tax
Corporate Income Tax
Dog License Tax
Excise Taxes
Federal Income Tax
Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA)
Fishing License Tax
Food License Tax
Fuel Permit Tax
Gasoline Tax (currently 44.75 cents per gallon)
Gross Receipts Tax
Hunting License Tax
Inheritance Tax
Inventory Tax
IRS Interest Charges IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax)
Liquor Tax
Luxury Taxes
Marriage License Tax
Medicare Tax
Personal Property Tax
Property Tax
Real Estate Tax
Service Charge Tax
Social Security Tax
Road Usage Tax
Recreational Vehicle Tax
Sales Tax
School Tax
State Income Tax
State Unemployment Tax (SUTA)
Telephone Federal Excise Tax
Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax
Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Taxes
Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge Tax
Telephone Recurring and Nonrecurring Charges Tax
Telephone   State  and Local Tax
Telephone Usage Charge Tax
Utility Taxes
Vehicle License Registration Tax
Vehicle Sales Tax
Watercraft Registration Tax
Well Permit Tax
Workers Compensation Tax




STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY? Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, & our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

What in the hell happened? Can you spell 'politicians?'

Hat Tip; Eric

The Rural Sign Painter

I can't help but appreciate everything he prints. Without a computer (I am assuming) I guess this is the next best way to communicate with the public.

POKER RUN TODAY

COURTNEY BLOXOM BENEFIT POKER RUN TODAY

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Looks like a great day for a bike ride!! Be safe and have a great time.

I am writing this just shortly after midnight and I already know that when dawn comes it is going to be a beautiful day on Delmarva!!

But just a note to those that have been following Courtney and her wonder Mother, along with her family and friends, as they all struggle with Courtney's recovery.......

Earlier this evening Courtney was having a rather difficult time. So PLEASE send prayers and lots of them for Courtney and family.

Have fun. Eat hearty. Be safe. And take pictures so I can post them!

DON'T FEED THE DEER Say Virginia Game Officials

Don't feed the deer. Ok. But I'd like to know how the "negative consequences of feeding deer" were decided.

I'd also like to know how this will help control vehicle collisions with deer.

RICHMOND

Starting Sept. 1, feeding deer will be illegal in Virginia.

The annual prohibition runs through the first Saturday in January.

The state Department of Game and Inland Fisheries says the ban is intended to curb the negative consequences of feeding deer, such as unnaturally increasing population numbers. That can lead to damage to natural habitats, disease transmission and human-deer conflicts, including vehicle collisions with the large animals.

Besides the September-to-January feeding ban, it is now illegal to feed deer all year in Clarke, Frederick, Shenandoah and Warren counties.

The feeding ban in those four counties is part of the department's chronic wasting disease management plan established in April.

www.hamptonroads.com

Pocomoke Armed Robbery

POCOMOKE, Md. - An armed robbery suspect is still at large in Pocomoke.

Police said Thursday (?) afternoon around 2:19 PM, a man walked into the "Duck In" store on Lynnhaven Drive, pulled out a semi-automatic handgun and demanded money.

Police said he fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash.

No one was injured.

The suspect is described as a young black male, with corn rows, with a thin waist around 5'5" to 5'6", about 110 to 115 lbs. He was last seen wearing blue baggy jeans, a black belt with silver studs, a white long sleeve shirt pulled over his head, and white sneakers with a dark stripe.

Anyone with information is asked to call Pocomoke City Police at 410-957-1300.

I am assuming that this report is speaking about today - Saturday- and not Thursday as stated.

www.wmdt.com

Has Robbery Become A Sport?

If you haven't heard and you live in the Pocomoke area the Pocomoke Duck In got robbed AGAIN just a few hours ago! Yes, that's right! AGAIN!!! If I am counting correctly that makes it TWICE in one week!

I don't know about any of you but I find this very disturbing. But I guess this will continue until the taxpayers put their foot down and demand to know. Even then I don't think it will work. And for the life of me I truly do NOT understand why law enforcement doesn't want people to know about crime in their area.

Aren't our eyes and ears a valuable source to law enforcement? If not then please stop asking us if we have seen these people a week after the incident occurs.

Crime is everywhere now. Corner Mart at T's Corner was robbed earlier this week and just last night a Royal Farms was robbed in the Virginia area. I will give our sheriff's department credit because they DO report to the citizens.......most of the time........and aren't afraid to ask for the publics help.

Robberies in stores should be reported to the media the next day. Any type of crime needs to reported to the public the next day............all of the info....... Citizens should not have to be "fed" bits and pieces and rely on "public information.

Glenn Beck Supporters Head For D.C. Rally - 'RESTORING HONOR'

WASHINGTON — Glenn Beck's supporters started boarding buses days ago in cities as far from the nation's capital as Sacramento, Salt Lake City and Houston.

Heading east for a grass-roots show of force on Saturday, they will join the conservative icon for a rally that he says is aimed at "restoring honor" to a troubled nation.

"People are upset with the direction of the country," says Patti Weaver, head of the Pittsburgh Tea Party, who is bringing 900 people on 16 buses to the event at the Lincoln Memorial. The rally will "continue to unite people who are upset with our government. … We can take our country back."

Beck has been criticized by civil rights groups such as the National Urban League for holding the rally at the site of Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech on racial equality and on its 47th anniversary. The Fox News and radio talk-show host insists that his rally is about supporting the nation's troops — not about politics.

He has instructed his followers not to bring signs, and in a post on his website this week he chastised those who he says are trying to "label this a gathering of hatemonger's."

Beck's supporters, however, talk about the event in political terms. The keynote speaker is Sarah Palin, the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee and a potential 2012 White House aspirant. In her home state of Alaska, Palin's endorsement appears to have helped propel a little-known lawyer named Joe Miller to a possible upset victory over incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski in Tuesday's Republican primary. Miller, who was backed by the Tea Party, is almost 1,700 votes ahead and awaiting a final tally of absentee ballots.

Many of Beck's supporters identify themselves as members of the small-government, anti-tax Tea Party or other conservative grass-roots groups and they recruited rally-goers through those organizations.

"It's time for Americans to let themselves be heard instead of being spoken to or spoken for by people who don't represent us," says Dan Baltes of Salt Lake City, who boarded a bus at 2 a.m. Wednesday for the 50-plus hour ride to Washington, D.C.

Baltes, who runs a group called Americans Against Immigration Amnesty, says "the government has a deaf ear to our best interests."

Thelma Taormina of Houston, who has organized two busloads from Texas, says she's concerned that the Obama administration and Congress are passing legislation that strips Americans of their rights. The sweeping new health-care law means people are going to "lose our human rights in one fell swoop" and new credit-card legislation aimed at protecting consumers' rights "means they can go into your personal bank accounts and get information," she says.

Taormina says she hopes the rally "wakes up America."

How much attention the rally gets likely will depend on how many people show up. Beck's permit from the National Park Service estimates 300,000 attendees.

Beck, who last year called President Obama a "racist" and accused him of having a "deep-seated hatred for white people," says he never intended to hold his rally on the anniversary of King's speech. He says he was hoping for Sept. 12th, but that's a Sunday and he didn't want to have the rally on the Sabbath. That Aug. 28 was the only other day the site was available that worked with his schedule was a matter of "divine providence" not political intent, he says.

Al Sharpton, who has organized his own rally and march on Saturday, is skeptical.

"Is he going to address civil rights?" Sharpton asks. His event on Saturday at a once-segregated city high school and a march to the Martin Luther King memorial site on the National Mall will include other civil rights leaders and Education Secretary Arne Duncan.

Beck, whose Fox News show averages more than 2 million viewers a day, says critics are being unfair.

"Those opposing the rally do so from a position of ignorance," he wrote. "They have no idea what this rally is going to be. … It's not about bigotry or politics. It's about the content of character and merit. I hope those at the counter rallies this Saturday and others opposing this event actually listen to the words with an open mind."

Sharpton and others say they've already heard enough from Beck, Palin and those who support them.

Democratic strategist Donna Brazile, who has helped organize previous events marking the anniversary of King's speech, said Beck's event is about "division and separation."

Sharpton says he'll avoid confrontations with Beck supporters. "We don't want to make the day about them," he says. "We want to make the day about 'the dream.'

www.usatoday.com

We Have Guns - But A Ban On Ammunitions?

Scares about government gun bans are often just that — mere scares.

But a recent petition made to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has the potential to become much more than a scare. It wouldn’t do away with guns, but it’d do away with a lot of ammunition.

Environmental advocacy groups have petitioned EPA chief Lisa Jackson to ban the use of lead bullets, lead shot and lead fishing sinkers on the grounds that the continued use of lead violates the 1976 Toxic Substance Control Act.

The petition (available for review in PDF format at the EPA website) argues that lead shot and lead bullet fragments routinely poison scavengers, songbirds, predatory birds, waterfowl and some mammals. It cites valid scientific studies and makes a pretty fair case for the EPA to mandate non-toxic ammunition.

But to grant the petition and enact a lead ban, the EPA would literally have to ignore the very law the petitioners cite as the rationale for the ban. When Congress passed the Toxic Substance Control Act back in 1976, they specifically exempted lead ammunition.

No problem, say the petitioners. They argue, in essence, that the law refers to cartridges and shells, and not specifically to bullets or shot. They further argue that since bullets and shot are sold individually as ammunition components, they therefore fall under the Toxic Substance Control Act and can be banned by EPA regulation.

It is a sign of the times, I suppose, when perfectly clear legal language can be parsed into something completely contradictory to its original intent.

The EPA has until Nov. 1 to rule on the petition.

www.wvgazette.com

Oglesby: Subject Of Lawsuit Regarding Unpaid Campaign Expenses

(Aug. 27, 2010) Beau Oglesby, candidate Worcester County state’s attorney, is being sued for alleged unpaid campaign expenses related to the 2006 election when he narrowly lost to State’s Attorney Joel Todd.

“I just want to be paid,” said Thom Gulyas, owner of ACE Printing and Mailing, who filed a lawsuit against Oglesby on Aug. 19. “I think waiting four years is long enough.”

Oglesby ordered printing and mail advertising that totaled $13,751.62. In November 2006, he made a $4,000 payment, Gulyas said. According to the online Maryland Elections Center at http://www.mdelections.org/, Oglesby made a $1,000 payment to ACE in August, a $4,000 payment to ACE in October and a $3,000 payment in November.

Also according to that Web site, Gulyas made a $4,000 contribution of campaign materials to Citizens for Beau Oglesby in November. The same Web site says Gulyas’ wife, Belinda, made a $2,000 contribution of campaign materials. Gulyas, however, denies that he or his wife ever donated campaign materials worth thousands of dollars, although he did donate some small printed items such as copies and fliers that he often donates to candidates who do business with him. The campaign materials, the envelopes, the mail processing and postage were not campaign contributions, Gulyas said. They were part of a business transaction.

Oglesby

In a press release issued Wednesday, Oglesby said Gulyas was a big supporter of his campaign and in the fall of 2006, “convinced Oglesby to use his services for a direct mailing in the closing days of the campaign.”

The statement said Gulyas was told to limit the scope of the mailing to that which would be covered by the balance in Oglesby’s campaign account. However, the Oglesby release said Gulyas insisted on expanding the coverage of the mailing, agreeing that his estimated $6,000 in additional printing and mailing cost would be viewed as a campaign contribution from his wife and him.”

Also in the press release, Oglesby said he had not seen the lawsuit filing, which Gulyas said contains a copy of an invoice from ACE to Oglesby dated Dec. 13, 2006. It shows the total of $13,751.62, a payment of $8,004.89 and a balance of $5,746.73. It says the terms are “Net 10 Days.”

In December 2006 and January 2007, Gulyas said, he received telephone calls from Oglesby saying he was getting funding together to pay the bill.

Oglesby’s press release said Gulyas contacted him more than a year after the campaign ended and the campaign account had been ended “and requested additional payment for the work that had been contributed.”

Gulyas continued to send bills and continued to be unpaid. Oglesby left his position as a prosecutor in the Wicomico County State’s Attorney’s Office and moved to the Western Shore where he worked as a criminal defense attorney in Montgomery, Prince George’s and Howard counties. Gulyas found his addresses by looking online at the Web site for the Maryland Judiciary Case Search, http://casesearch.courts.state.md/. us/inquiry/inquiry-index.jsp. One of the addresses was for a law firm in Rockville. Oglesby also had a Greenbelt address.

Last spring, Oglesby, who had returned to the Eastern Shore and is now the deputy state’s attorney for Caroline County, called and said he would pay the bill, Gulyas said. Then he e-mailed Gulyas in April and May. In May, Gulyas was fed up and got a promissory note and asked Oglesby to sign it. Nothing happened for a few days, then Gulyas notified Oglesby that he would turn the matter over to his attorney. Oglesby responded with a phone call.

“He lit me up,” Gulyas said Monday. “He was extremely angry.”

The promissory note, Gulyas told Oglebsy, meant that he would drag Oglesby to the courthouse to get paid, but he also told him he would give him 90 days to pay the outstanding balance of $7,746.73.

“He was cursing and swearing at me,” Gulyas said. “He kept ranting and raving.”

According to the lawsuit, “The Defendant’s inability to maintain a civilized dialogue with the Plaintiff severed all further communications.”

In July, Oglesby sent Gulyas a $2,000 payment.

“That’s the last I heard,” Gulyas said.

Oglesby explains the $2,000 payment by saying in his press release that despite the prior agreement in which he had no legal obligation to repay the additional money, he decided he “would refund his donation from my new account as soon as it became active.”

Oglesby said the timing of Gulyas’ lawsuit is political.

“Now that Thom has publicly endorsed my opponent, the timing of this frivolous lawsuit, just two months before the election, a lawsuit that he knows is barred by the statute of limitations, speaks for itself,” he said.

Gulyas said the lawsuit is not politically motivated.

“That’s a damn lie,” Gulyas said. “Business comes first. It’s my money and I want to be paid. It has nothing to do with politics.”

The case is scheduled for Oct. 27 in District Court in Snow Hill.

www.oceancitytoday.net

Mother Arrested After 3-Year-Old Son Fires Gun

SEAFORD, Del.- Seaford police say an 18-year-old woman is facing charges after her 3-year-old son fired two shots from a .410 shotgun, which struck the roll-up door of a firehouse.

Christy A. Smullen is charged with tampering with physical evidence, reckless endangering, possession of a firearm by a person prohibited, endangering the welfare of a child, criminal mischief over $1,000 and discharging a weapon in city limits. She was released on $8,000 unsecured bail, pending a preliminary hearing in the Court of Common Pleas.

It happened about 2:10 p.m. Wednesday when officers received a report that the Seaford Volunteer Fire Department was being shot at. When officers arrived on the scene, they found two bullet holes in a roll-up door on the west side of the firehouse.

Police say an investigation showed that a 3-year-old boy on a porch across the street had gotten the unsecured loaded shotgun from the home and fired at the firehouse.

Smullen, who is the boy's mother, was taken into custody and arrested on the aforementioned charges. Police say the shotgun was also recovered from the home and found to have been loaded with .38-caliber ammunition.

Seaford police detectives executed a search warrant at the home on the 200 block of Cannon Street where they located additional ammunition and a BB gun.

The Delaware Division of Family Services also responded and placed the child with his father.

www.wboc.com

Massive Computer Failure In Virginia

Richmond, Va. --

A massive computer failure is crippling Virginia government, knocking out websites, blocking the issuance of driver's licenses, preventing the processing of jobless benefits and delaying welfare payments.

The outage, flaring Wednesday afternoon and expected to disrupt some services through the weekend, is attributed to 228 malfunctioning servers, which supply shared software and applications to clusters of state agency computers.

Twenty-six of more than 80 state agencies were hit by the shutdown, including the office of Gov. Bob McDonnell.

"We're disappointed to have a failure, an outage of this magnitude," Samuel A. Nixon Jr., head of the Virginia Information Technologies Agency, said yesterday. "No matter what you do, it's going to happen on occasion."

The incident is the latest embarrassment for VITA and Northrop Grumman, the company the state hired in 2005 to provide computer and communications services under a $2.3 billion contract -- Virginia's richest-ever privatization deal.

VITA and the firm, whose headquarters was lured to Northern Virginia from California by McDonnell, have quarreled for months over shoddy, expensive service. This past spring, VITA and the company announced a new agreement giving an additional $236 million to Northrop Grumman in return for a pledge of better service.

The Rain family of Lynchburg was hit twice by the computer blackout.

Marc Rain Jr., on his way to Old Dominion University in Norfolk, had lost his driver's license and tried to get it reissued Wednesday at the Department of Motor Vehicles office in Lynchburg, and then again yesterday in Richmond.

"We were dropping him off at college," said Rain's mother, Shelly Rain.

None of DMV's 74 offices could process license applications and may not be able to do so again until Monday, officials said. DMV still is handling other transactions, including vehicle decals and titles, and driving and vehicle records.

With its website inaccessible, thousands of out-of-work Virginians could not file jobless claims with the Virginia Employment Commission.

"Access to our website is down 100 percent," said VEC spokeswoman Joyce Fogg. "So no one can get to our website, not even us."

The Virginia Department of Social Services, which, among other things, manages child-support payments and aid to needy families, reports that the outage is disrupting benefits.

"It appears that some benefit payments will be delayed, but we will know more [today]," said spokeswoman Carla Hill. "We are still assessing and are doing everything we can to get back to normal business processes as quickly as possible."

Nixon, appointed by McDonnell under a new law strengthening gubernatorial control over VITA, said that the shutdown -- apparently the largest for the state since 2007 -- occurred about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Nixon said 228 of 3,600 servers were affected when technicians for EMC, a Northrop Grumman subcontractor, were checking for faulty equipment. Nixon said he believes state computer data are largely intact.

Nixon also said that the interruption was of insufficient magnitude to activate a backup system at a duplicate computer center in Russell County, in Southwest Virginia.

Nixon said it is too early to determine whether Northrop Grumman will be punished financially because of the outage. The latest contract, which extends the company's deal with the state from 10 to 13 years, includes new penalties for poor service.

"It depends on how long the outage remains," Nixon said.

Megan Mitchell, a spokeswoman for Northrop Grumman, said, "Knowledgeable and dedicated staff at the agencies, VITA and Northrop Grumman are working together to respond appropriately to the impacted systems.

She added, "It is our priority to minimize these impacts and restore services as quickly as possible."

However, the incident alarmed legislators already skeptical about the effectiveness of the VITA-Northrop Grumman deal, its rising cost to taxpayers and implications for other privatization ventures.

"It's pretty obvious that Northrop Grumman continues to underperform, and I think it would have been wise for the governor to require quality performance before extending the contract for three years," said Sen. Janet D. Howell, D-Fairfax, a member of the Senate Finance Committee.

"This is a sign that privatization is very complicated and should be entered into with caution."

www.timesdispatch.com

Riding Students Raise Money To Save Horse From Slaughter

These young ladies have already begun to make a difference in this world. Be sure to visit the website.

SELBYVILLE -- The "kill pit" is where horses unworthy of auction are kept.

They are broken, bleeding and on the brink of death, awaiting transport to a foreign slaughterhouse.

"There was a horse there in extreme pain, suffering from stomach colic and a broken leg," said Shelley Wright-Estevam, owner of Sweet Meadow Stable. "While he was trying to lay down to relieve his pain, his rope was tied too short to find any comfort."

Moments later, she said, the horse died.

For 10 years, Wright-Estevam has been traveling to the New Holland Sales Stable in New Holland, Pa., to purchase horses that would otherwise be sold to slaughterhouses. She's rescued about 20 horses. This year, a group of her riding students took up the cause and purchased Rosco, a 5-year-old quarter horse cross.

"He was cute as a button," said Peyton Carter, 13. "We bid on him because he was in our price range and he turned out to be the most wonderful horse."

The other girls involved are Tarryn Chichester, 15, Rebecca Saltzman, 17, Taylor Smith, 16, and Andi Wade, 14. All live in the Bethany Beach and Rehoboth Beach area.

Tarryn Chichester, 15, of Reston, Va., Rebecca Saltzman, 17, of Randolph, N.J., , Peyton Carter, 13, of Rehoboth Beach, Taylor Smith, 16, of Ellicott City, Md., Andi Wade, 14, of Selbyville and Sweet Meadow Stable owner Shelly Wright-Estevam pose with Rosco, whom the girls rescued from slaughter. (Scott Nathan photo)

If you help Contact Mindi or Peyton Carter at 302-227-6364 to find out how you can help rescue horses. For more information on Sweet Meadow Stable, visit www.sweetmeadowstable.com.

Carter and her friends began raising funds for Rosco early this summer, through bake sales, baby-sitting, business sponsorships and other means. They raised more than $1,000. With taxes, Rosco cost $505. According to Wright-Estevam, all horses worth less than $700 are purchased by "killer buyers," who ship the animals to Canada or Mexico where they are processed for their meat.

"All horses are slaughtered for human consumption in foreign countries," Wright-Estevam said. "With a large racing industry, America is the largest producer of horse meat."

Rosco lucked out.

"We already have a few people interested in buying him," Carter said. "But we have to make sure that whoever takes him does not plan to send him back to auction."

The girls have dubbed their effort "The Sweet Meadow Stable 2010 Rescue Team," and plan to continue raising funds to purchase more horses. Mindi Carter, Peyton's mother, said the girls could use all the community support they can get.

"They are doing this pretty much on their own, with guidance from their instructor, while learning valuable life lessons along the way," she said.

www.delmarvanow.com

Struggling Cities Shut Firehouses in Budget Crisis

Fire departments around the nation are cutting jobs, closing firehouses and increasingly resorting to “rolling brownouts” in which they shut different fire companies on different days as the economic downturn forces many cities and towns to make deep cuts that are slowing their responses to fires and other emergencies.

Philadelphia began rolling brownouts this month, joining cities from Baltimore to Sacramento that now shut some units every day. San Jose, Calif., laid off 49 firefighters last month. And Lawrence, Mass., north of Boston, has laid off firefighters and shut down half of its six firehouses, forcing the city to rely on help from neighboring departments each time a fire goes to a second alarm.

Fire chiefs and union officials alike say it is the first time they have seen such deep cuts in so many parts of the country. “I’ve never seen it so widespread,” said Harold A. Schaitberger, the general president of the International Association of Fire Fighters.

The risks of cutting fire service were driven home here last month when Bentley Do, a 2-year-old boy who was visiting relatives, somehow got his hands on a gum ball, put it in his mouth, started laughing and then began choking.

“It blocked the air hole,” said his uncle, Brian Do, who called 911 while other relatives frantically tried to dislodge the gum ball. “No air could flow in and out.”

It is only 600 steps from the front door of the neatly kept stucco home where the boy was staying to the nearest fire station, just down the block. But the station was empty that evening: its engine was in another part of town, on a call in an area usually covered by an engine that had been taken out of service as part of a brownout plan.

The police came to the home within five minutes and began performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation, officials said. But it took nine and a half minutes — almost twice the national goal of arriving within five minutes — for the fire engine, with a paramedic and more medical equipment, to get there. An ambulance came moments later and took Bentley to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The San Diego Fire-Rescue chief, Javier Mainar, said it was impossible to say whether the delay contributed to Bentley’s death on July 20. But he said there was no doubt that the city’s brownouts, which take 13 percent of firefighters off the streets each day to save $11.5 million annually, led to the delay.

“You can just lock everything down and look at it sequentially, chronologically, as to what occurred,” Chief Mainar said in an interview. “There is no question that the brownout of Engine 44 resulted in Engine 38 having to take a response in that community, and because of that, Engine 38 was now out of position to respond to something that happened just down the street from their fire station.”

Fire service was once a sacred cow at budget time. But the downturn has lingered so long that many cities, which have already made deep cuts in other agencies, are now turning to their fire departments.

Some are trying to wrest concessions from unions, which over the years have won generous pension plans that allow many firefighters to retire in their 40s and 50s — plans that many cities say are unaffordable. Others want to reduce minimum-staffing requirements, which often force them to resort to costly overtime to fill shifts. Others are simply cutting service.

Analysts worry that some of the cuts could be putting people and property in danger. As the downturn has worn on, ISO, an organization that evaluates cities’ fire protection capabilities for the insurance industry, has downgraded more cities, said Michael R. Waters, ISO’s vice president of risk-detection services.

“This is generally due to a reduction in firefighting personnel available for responding to calls, a reduction in the number of responding fire apparatus, and gaps in the optimal deployment of apparatus or deficiencies in firefighter training programs,” Mr. Waters said in a statement.

Several fire chiefs said in interviews that the cuts were making them nervous.

“It’s roulette,” said Chief James S. Clack of the Baltimore City Fire Department, which recently reduced the number of fire units closed each day to three from six. Officials saw that the closings in the 55-unit department were in some cases leading to longer response times. “I’m always worried that something’s going to happen where one of these companies is closed.”

Early in his mayoralty, Michael R. Bloomberg of New York closed six fire companies to save money. This year, a threat to close 20 more — a 6 percent reduction in New York’s fire companies — was averted when the city found savings elsewhere.

Several cities — including Lawrence — have said that they were forced to cut service because the unions failed to make concessions. Mr. Schaitberger, the union president, who was here for a union convention, said that protecting the pensions his members have won over the years was a top priority this year.

The pension issue has an added resonance in San Diego. The city was forced to consider a bankruptcy filing even before the Great Recession, and was barred from raising money by selling bonds to the public after officials disclosed that they had shortchanged the pension fund for city workers for years, even as they improved pension benefits. San Diego’s pension fund has only two-thirds of the money it needs to pay the benefits promised to retirees, according to an updated calculation made by the city in the spring, and faces a shortfall of $2.1 billion.

So even before the recession and the brownouts, fire service in San Diego was stretched thin. A previous San Diego fire chief, Jeff Bowman, was hired in 2002 with a mandate to build up the department, but he resigned in 2006, after the pension-fueled fiscal crisis surfaced and it became clear that he would not get the money to build and staff the extra fire stations he believed were needed. “The question is whether fire protection is adequate, and in my opinion it’s not,” he said in an interview.

After Bentley Do died, the City Council agreed to put a question on the ballot in November asking voters to approve a sales tax increase, which could be put in place only if the city adopts certain budget and pension reforms. The money could restore the fire service and help close a deep budget gap projected for next year.

But it would come too late for the Do family. Bentley, whose father, Nam Do, an American, was working in Vietnam as an architect, was just visiting San Diego with his mother, Mien Nguyen. Ms. Nguyen, who was six months pregnant, was here to take the oath of United States citizenship. She was sworn in the day after Bentley died, Brian Do, the uncle, said, but she fainted when she got her certificate and was taken to the hospital. Nam Do left his job in Vietnam to come here to grieve for his son, and goes to a temple every day, Brian Do said.

He said that the family had no plans to sue the city. “We’re not blaming the city or blaming the Fire Department,” he said, “but the reason I speak out is because I want them to do a better job for other people.”

www.nytimes.com