Virginia Background Checks for Gun Sales Challenged

By Julian Walker

The Virginia-Pilot

RICHMOND
Virginia's criminal background check system for firearm purchases, the first of its kind in the nation, is being targeted for elimination.

Gun-rights advocates have lobbied Gov. Bob McDonnell to scrap the program, arguing that it is redundant because a federal background check system can replace it.

Gun-control groups say doing so would take a valuable law enforcement tool away from Virginia State Police and undermine state gun laws.

Efforts to cancel the state's 22-year-old background check system, known as the Virginia Firearms Transaction Program, could be debated in the upcoming General Assembly session. Republicans will control state government for the first time since 2001 and a determined push to loosen state gun laws is expected.

Some of those supporting looser controls on guns are the National Rifle Association, which has urged Virginians to lobby McDonnell on background checks, and the Virginia Citizens Defense League.

A spokeswoman for McDonnell said "informal discussions with interested parties" about the background check system have been held and the subject remains under review.

Ending the state background check could be a tricky political issue for McDonnell, a pro-gun Republican who doesn't own firearms.

Doing away with it would likely shrink the state bureaucracy and at least nominally reduce spending, areas where the governor has worked to distinguish himself. But it also invites potential blowback from gun-control and public-safety advocates at a time that McDonnell is nurturing vice-presidential aspirations.

By law, prospective gun buyers must clear background investigations before dealers are permitted to sell to them.

The state program and the National Instant Criminal Background Check System screen purchasers for criminal history, illegal presence in the country, drug offenses, dishonorable military discharge, mental health adjudications and protective orders against them.

While there is overlap, the state system is not exactly the same as federal system, which has been around since 1998 and is overseen by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Some Virginia standards are stricter than the federal prohibitions, State Police officials said, and ending the state program would undercut aspects of state gun law.

Among the key disparities: State protective order rules apply to more family situations than the federal standards; Virginia's drug policy disqualifies buyers for longer periods of time; and rules on foreign-born purchasers differ.

What's more, Virginia law blocks people with juvenile felony convictions from obtaining a weapon. Because the state severely limits access to state juvenile criminal records, however, information about youthful felonies doesn't appear in the federal background check system.

There's also a difference between how the state and federal systems view mental health treatment.
Both bar those who have been involuntarily committed from purchasing guns.

But Virginia law also specifies that someone evaluated under a temporary detention order who then submits to voluntary treatment would be barred from purchasing a weapon - an outgrowth of the response to Virginia Tech gunman Seung-Hui Cho's history with the mental health system.

Perhaps most distressing to some gun-control advocates, the federal system doesn't limit handgun purchases to one a month, as Virginia law does. As a delegate, McDonnell voted for the one-gun-a-month law, but he has since said he would sign legislation overturning it.

Getting rid of "the piece of law that's stuck in our craw since 1993" is a goal for gun-rights activists, said Virginia Citizens Defense League president Philip Van Cleave.

Like the NRA, Van Cleave's group has problems with the state background check system, but for different reasons: Members says it has ceased to be the rapid-response system it was initially billed as.

"There was a promise made to gun owners back then that this was going to be so smooth, so quick," Van Cleave said, noting that at the system's inception, "state police in Virginia were showing everyone in the nation how this should be done."

Over time, he said, the federal system has eclipsed Virginia's program.

State Police officials said any delays in processing checks and replying to gun dealers is due to steady growth in application volume even as the economy has dipped and the number of staffers doing the checks has shrunk. The department processed roughly 276,000 transactions last year.

Gun-rights advocates also bridle at the $2 state fee charged to purchasers, which goes to the State Police to offset program costs. There is no such federal fee, they say.

Response times might improve, State Police say, if legislation to boost the criminal history check fee clears the General Assembly.

A bill to boost the fee to $5 was filed by Sen. John Watkins in 2009, but it died in the House of Delegates. Watkins is a Powhatan County Republican who, like McDonnell, voted for the handgun limit law in the 1990s but now favors repealing it.

However, he doesn't support doing away with state background checks because he fears it would undermine Virginia standards.

"I'm worried that the federal system is not going to protect us from the sale of weapons to people like Cho," Watkins said. "The system has got to work better and the only way I think you're going to get that is to set your own standards and impose them."

That sentiment is shared by others who support keeping the state system.

"Our state police are leaders in the country in processing background checks," keeping guns away from those disqualified to purchase them and apprehending those who try to illegally obtain firearms, said Lori Haas, a board member with the Virginia Center for Public Safety and the mother of a student shot at Virginia Tech in 2007.

Source;  http://hamptonroads.com/node/622114

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott Says Obama Has a New Christmas Tree Tax

Have you been hearing the hoopla about the Christmas tree tax?  Here's the story......

And nope- no tax this year.

                                                            By Greg Abbott

Weeks before Thanksgiving, the Internet was abuzz with holiday news that no doubt would turn Santa Claus' smile upside down: President Barack Obama was trying to make it more expensive for people to buy Christmas trees.

A headline on the Los Angeles Times’ website asked: "Is President Obama 'the Grinch who taxed Christmas' trees?" And a Republican congressman from Louisiana posted a press release slamming the president for trying to "sneak through this new tax on Christmas trees."

In Texas, Attorney General Greg Abbott and others took to Twitter the same day — Nov. 9, 2011 — to express their opposition. Abbott's tweet: "Obama = Scrooge. Obama has new Christmas Tree Tax."
Really?

Christmas trees are a big business in Oregon, so our PolitiFact colleagues there jumped on this claim.

Included in Abbott's tweet was a link to a Nov. 8 blog post by David Addington on the conservative Heritage Foundation's website titled "Obama couldn't wait: His new Christmas tree tax." The post cited an entry in that day's Federal Register — which publishes information on regulations — announcing an effort to help the Christmas tree industry promote itself.

It's what’s known as a "checkoff program" — under which producers of a commodity are required to pitch in money for ad campaigns, market research, product development and consumer education efforts. Some of the most familiar checkoff programs are for beef ("it’s what’s for dinner") and pork ("the other white meat").
According to the Federal Register entry on the Christmas tree program, it was sought by an industry group called the Christmas Tree Checkoff Task Force. Proponents of the program say the Christmas tree industry needs a sustained national marketing campaign to compete with advertising by sellers of artificial trees.

To fund the program, growers and importers of Christmas trees will pay a "15-cent assessment" on each tree sold, and the money will go to a board made up of 12 Christmas tree sellers, who will direct the research and marketing efforts. Board members will be nominated by the industry and selected by the U.S. secretary of agriculture. Growers and importers who sell fewer than 500 trees a year are exempt from that 15-cent assessment — which Addington dubbed a tax in his blog.

A day after the Heritage blog posted, criticism of the program exploded across the Internet. By the end of the day, the White House was telling reporters that the administration would delay the Christmas tree checkoff program. No new start date was given.

Justin DeJong, a spokesman for the Agriculture Department, told us that the program is on hold because "misinformation" about it had created confusion for consumers shortly before the start of the Christmas season.

DeJong disputed the labeling of the 15-cent assessment as a tax. "What’s being talked about here is an industry group deciding to impose fees on itself to fund a promotional campaign, and there are many success stories in every sector of the industry (milk, beef, pork, etc)," he wrote in an email.

Official notice that the program had been delayed indefinitely appeared in the Nov. 17, 2011, Federal Register. The entry says that the program is on hold "to provide additional time for the department to reach out to the Christmas tree industry and the public to explain how a research and promotion program is a producer-driven program to support American farmers."

Betty Malone, an Oregon tree farmer who led the task force that submitted the request for the program to the Agriculture Department, told PolitiFact Oregon that she was stunned anyone would describe the tree fee as something dreamed up by Obama.

"We’ve been working on this for three-and-a-half years," she said. "The industry has talked about this for 20 years. This started long before Obama" was president.

According to the task force's proposal, filed with the Agriculture Department on Aug. 12, 2009, sessions to gauge interest in the establishment of a checkoff program among growers were held in Michigan, North Carolina, Oregon and Pennsylvania in 2008 — when George W. Bush was president.

Not everyone in the industry embraces the idea. According to the Nov. 8 Federal Register entry, the Agriculture Department received more than 550 responses about the checkoff program proposal during its 65-day designated "comment period." Of the total, 398 were in favor while 147 were opposed.

In Texas, Marshall Cathey, president of the Texas Christmas Tree Growers Association, with more than 100 members, said the group voted against supporting the checkoff program proposal.

We talked with two Texas Christmas tree farmers opposed to the program. Bob Childress, whose farm is about 40 miles east of Abilene, said he considers the program an example of government reaching inappropriately into the marketplace.

Marc Nash, co-owner of Elgin Christmas Tree Farm, agreed and said he objects to being forced by the government to pay into an industry promotional campaign. Nash also said Texas growers, which primarily have small farms in rural areas, won't benefit from the checkoff program because its marketing efforts would most likely take place in major, urban areas where any increased sales would help large Christmas tree wholesalers.

Next, we looked into whether the 15-cent fee would be passed on to tree buyers and whether it amounts to a tax, as Abbott says.

The National Christmas Tree Association, a supporter of the program, said in a Nov. 9, 2011, press release that "the program is not expected to have any impact on the final price consumers pay" for trees. However, Addington, in his blog, writes that "of course, the Christmas tree sellers are free to pass along the 15-cent federal fee to consumers who buy their Christmas trees."

Bryan Ostlund, executive director of the Pacific Northwest Christmas Tree Association, told PolitiFact Oregon that it's unclear whether the fees would ultimately be the responsibility of buyers. "It doesn’t get automatically passed along, but somebody along the line has to cover it," he said.

PolitiFact also found disagreement about whether the tree charge is a tax. The federal government monitors the agricultural marketing board that administers the money, but the revenue doesn't go to the government.

The national tree association agrees with the Agriculture Department that the 15-cent assessment isn't a tax.

Again, Addington's perspective is different. In his blog, he writes: "The federal government mandates that the Christmas tree sellers pay the 15-cents per tree, whether they want to or not. The federal government directs that the revenue generated by the 15-cent fee goes to the board appointed by the secretary of agriculture to carry out the Christmas tree program established by the secretary of agriculture. Mr. President, that's a new 15-cent tax to pay for a federal program to improve the image and marketing of Christmas trees."

For other perspectives, PolitiFact consulted national experts.
"It certainly doesn't smell or quack like a tax," said Robert Litan, the vice president for Research and Policy at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation who was an associate director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Bill Clinton.

On the other hand, Dan Mitchell, an economist with the libertarian Cato Institute, says "a coercive levy is a tax."

Our ruling
Opinion is split on whether the 15-cent fee on Christmas trees — if it goes into effect — would be a tax and whether the cost would be passed along to consumers.

Setting that eye-of-the-beholder issue aside, the claim that Obama was behind the tree charge suggests he came up with the scheme. That's not correct; the idea originated with the industry before he became president. We rate the statement Mostly False.

Source;  http://www.politifact.com/texas/statements/2011/nov/20/greg-abbott/texas-attorney-general-greg-abbott-says-obama-has-/

A Special Birthday Today.......

~HAPPY BIRTHDAY

TO MY

SISTER~

"There is no better friend than a sister.

And there is no better sister than you."

~Author Unknown

TIME MACHINE ... Abandoned Island's Former Life

1892

After President-elect Grover Cleveland made a visit to the Eastern Shore of Virginia's Hog Island for a duck hunting vacation an 1892 American Press Association article was published about the island. The following information is gleaned from that article:

Hog Island was still inhabited at that time, with twenty-one families living there. Workers were oystermen, and employees of the government and a sporting clubhouse named Broadwater Clubhouse.

"Every man and every half grown boy can sail a boat, and the people are as near amphibians as they can well be without having web feet."

"The United States government has vainly essayed to give Hog Island the more euphonious name of Broadwater, but the name Hog Island sticks and the island figures thus upon the official election returns of Virginia. Hog Island cast thirty-one votes for Mr. Cleveland and none for any other candidate. That is the usual Democratic majority of the island, and the vote is so easily counted that although the ordinary method of reaching the mainland is by open sailboat the Hog Island returns are usually among the first to come in."

"Oysters, diamond backed terrapin and water fowl of many sorts swarm about Hog Island, and its neighbors. -- There is some attempt on the part of Virginia to protect the diamond backs, but restrictions upon the pursuit of game are not popular among the islands, and terrapin are caught and eaten whenever they are fit to eat. They are never cheap, even within a few miles of their feeding grounds, and they easily fetch from fifteen dollars to twenty-five dollars a dozen at Chincoteague."

"All craft at Hog Island, as along the whole coast, are flat bottoms because of shoal water.. -- The mail is ordinarily brought over to Hog Island in an open sailboat unless the owners of the clubhouse happen to be down, when the steam yacht performs the task."

"The people of the Atlantic coast islands of Virginia are as simple and kindly as any on earth. For the most part they live generation to generation upon the islands, and the only newcomers, save on populous Chincoteague, are the government employees and the sporting stranger."

Footnote: (source: Wikipedia): Hog Island.. "is a part of the Virginia Coast Reserve of The Nature Conservancy. Starting in the mid-19th century the town of Broadwater, Virginia was located on the southern end of the island, but had to be abandoned in the 1930's when rapid beach erosion made its continued existence untenable. However, many of the houses and other buildings were floated by barge to the mainland and can be found in Willis Wharf, Virginia and Oyster, Virginia."


May, 1893

(The Atlanta Constitution)

GONE TO HOG ISLAND

President Cleveland Off for a Few Days Fishing

Washington, May 30.- President Cleveland, accompanied by *L. Clark Davis of Philadelphia, left Washington for Hog Island, Virginia, over the Pennsylvania Railroad at 930 o'clock p.m. There was no other persons in the party except a porter. The president is due at Hog Island at 5'oclock tomorrow. He occupies a combination dining, sleeping, and observation car. His car will be switched off at Wilmington, Del., and will go south to Exmore, Va., where he will proceed by boat to Hog Island.

The president's determination is to return to Washington Saturday evening.

The president arrived at the station at 530 o'clock and made his way, accompanied by Mr. Davis and a valet carrying his hand satchel to his car. He was enveloped in a gray linen duster and wore a gray slouch hat pulled down almost over his eyes. Upon reaching the car, he took a seat near the door, lit a cigar and with his back to the window, sent smoke curling out of the back door of the car. Hundreds of people passed, but no one aside from the station officials and a watchful reporter seemed to be aware of the president of the United States.

Footnote: *Davis may have been associated with a group of Philadelphians who owned the sportsman's lodge on Hog Island at that time.


TIME-SNIP ... June, 1930

Four new chapters of the American Legion Auxiliary were being formed in Maryland. One was to be at Pocomoke City, attached to Worcester Post, No. 93.


TIME-SNIP ... February, 1960

Robert Frostrom and Donald Bennett of Pocomoke City were among area scouts saluted by The Salisbury Times as "Newspaperboy Scouts" on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of The Boy Scouts Of America. The boys were members of Pocomoke's Explorer Scout Troop143.


ACROSS THE USA

May, 1941

THANKSGIVING DAY CHANGE ABANDONED AFTER THIS YEAR

Washington, May 20-(AP)- President Roosevelt declared today that the experiment of moving up the day of Thanksgiving Day by a week to improve retail business had not worked and that next year Thanksgiving would be on the customary last Thursday in November.

This year, however, it will fall on the next to the last Thursday by presidential proclamation.



Do you have a local memory to share with PPE readers.. such as a big snow storm, a favorite school teacher, a local happening, something of interest your parents or grandparents told you about? It can be just a line or two or more if you wish. Your name won't be used unless you ask that it be. Send to tkforppe@yahoo.com and watch for it on a future TIME MACHINE posting!

Progress On the New Restaurant ~ Downtown Pocomoke City

When we visited downtown Pocomoke on Sunday, October 30th,  I took these photos of the area in which the new restaurant was being built.  There wasn't very much to be seen that day and I just more or less took pictures of dirt. But I needed to start somewhere in order to keep this documented if  not  for another soul but myself.

I happen to believe this is a very good idea.  One reason?  BOATERS!  If you have ever owned a boat, canoe, jet ski or any other floating device, and have traveled the waters of the Pocomoke River you have some  idea of just how hungry you can get!   We boated for years and always packed a picnic lunch- which is always fun but gets old before the summer is over.  This would have been a blessing.....

Let it be known that there are many other reasons to have a restaurant downtown - right where it is.

 Photos below taken Saturday, November 19, 2011 - 3 weeks later.

Still hoping for crab crepes on the menu. 

Virginia Man Charged With Raping Juvenile

WMDT-TV

STOCKTON, Md. - A Virginia man is behind bars after police say he raped a female juvenile.

Authorities say 55-year-old Alvin Fuller, of New Church, VA, was taken into custody on Friday with the assistance of members of the Accomack County Sheriff's Office. He faces charges of rape in the second degree, sex offense in the third degree, assault in the second degree, child abuse in the second degree and incest.

Investigators say Fuller had repeated course of conduct with a relative's 14-year-old daughter over a period of nearly a year.

According to authorities, Fuller befriended the juvenile over a lengthy period of time and learned how to manipulate and prey on the victim.

Authorities say, Fuller's arrest closes a joint investigation involving members of the Worcester County Bureau of Investigation and the Worcester County Child Advocacy Center. He is currently being held without bond.

Officials say an extradition hearing will be held at a future date.

Source;  http://www.wmdt.com/story/16081336/virginia-man-charged-with-raping-juvenile

Worcester Tribute Honors Vietnam War Veterans

NEVER STOP REMEMBERING

Worcester County Sheriff and Vietnam veteran, USMC, Reggie Mason
Worcester County Veterans Memorial in Ocean Pines.
ERIC DOERZBACH/WORCESTER COUNTY TIMES

Written by

Charlene Sharpe

Staff Writer

OCEAN PINES -- Many braved November's brisk winds to honor those who served their country Friday at the Worcester County Veterans Memorial.


A crowd of close to 200 gathered at the memorial for its eighth annual Veterans Day tribute.
"It's a special day," said Worcester County Sheriff and Vietnam veteran Reggie Mason, the event's keynote speaker.


This year's tribute highlighted the sacrifice of those who served the United States in Vietnam. Mason told the audience in detail about the 20 months he spent there.


"This place, I thought many times, would be my resting place," he said, recalling the foxholes, trenches and atrocities of the war.


He told of how his mother had written him a letter every day, and had written notes to God praying for his safety most nights.

Mason, who served in the Marines, was a survivor of the Tet Offensive of Jan. 31, 1968.

"I prayed and I cried and I survived," he said.


Marine Corps veteran Richard Tanner reminded those present that there were now more than 58,000 names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall in Washington, D.C. He added that 997 of those were soldiers who had died their first day in Vietnam.


"May we never forget their service and their sacrifice," said Tom Terry, president of the Ocean Pines Association board of directors.

The Delmarva Chorus performed a medley of songs from the Vietnam War era after which the crowd began an impromptu singing of "God Bless America."

Students from Berlin Intermediate School also offered renditions of patriotic songs.

The Rev. William Sterling of the Community Church of Ocean Pines offered closing thoughts.

"Pray for peace as if someone's life depended on it," he said, "because it does. Never stop remembering."

Source:  http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20111117/WCT01/111170319/Worcester-tribute-honors-Vietnam-War-veterans?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Worcester County Times|s

"An Old-Fashioned Christmas Evening" In Pocomoke City

SAVE THIS DATE! 

TIME MACHINE Preview ... Abandoned Island's Former Life!

A history you may not be aware of..on Hog Island, Va.

Read about it this Sunday on the Pocomoke Public Eye!



Do you have a local memory to share with PPE readers.. such as a big snow storm, a favorite school teacher, a local happening, something of interest your parents or grandparents told you about? It can be just a line or two or more if you wish. Your name won't be used unless you ask that it be. Send to tkforppe@yahoo.com and watch for it on a future TIME MACHINE posting!

LIVE PERFORMANCE AT THE MAR-VA

Auto Theft Alleged

SNOW HILL -- A Pocomoke woman was arrested on auto theft charges this week after allegedly swiping a motor vehicle belong to a Pocomoke business.

Around 4 a.m. on Wednesday, Maryland State Police troopers responded to a residence in Pocomoke for a reported auto theft. The troopers met with the victim, who told police a 1998 Mercury Mystique belonging to Nock’s Tire Service had been taken from the residence. The victim told police the suspect, later identified as Rebecca Lynn Bell, 40, of Pocomoke, had likely taken the vehicle and that she didn’t have permission to do so. The victim told police Bell lived in a separate apartment at the residence.

A description of the stolen vehicle and the suspect was broadcasted. A short time later, Pocomoke Police observed the vehicle in the area of Old Snow Hill Rd. and initiated a traffic stop. Pocomoke Police identified the driver as Bell and she was taken into custody.

Bell was charged with theft of a motor vehicle, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and driving while suspended

Source;  http://www.mdcoastdispatch.com/articles/2011/11/18/Cops-and-Courts/Armed-Robber-Convicted

Navy Takes Responsibility for Several Recent Sonic Booms

(Photo Credit: Ensign John Gay,
USS Constellation, US Navy)

WBOC

OCEAN CITY, Md.- The Navy confirmed Thursday that the Naval Air Station Patuxent River was the cause of three of the five recent sonic booms recently heard in Worcester County and other nearby locales.

Douglas Abbotts, a spokesman for the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, said the three sonic booms happened while the military was testing aircraft approximately 20 to 30 miles off of the Atlantic coast.

Referring to the sonic booms, Abbotts said, "[People will] hear them from time to time. We try not to operate other than in the middle of the day, but that is where the FAA has assigned us to do supersonic flights. And of course when you have supersonic flights, you get a sonic boom."

Abbotts said that atmospheric conditions helped amplify the sounds of the sonic booms on the dates that they occurred. He added that sonic booms should be nothing to be alarmed about.

Source;  http://www.wboc.com/story/16067713/sonic-booms?Call=Email&Format=HTML

Former Mayoral Candidate to Pay $75K Fine

Written by

Scott Muska
Staff Writer

POCOMOKE CITY -- Frank J. Ward III, a former Pocomoke mayoral candidate and Salisbury businessman, faced administrative law hearings in October and November after an agreement in a mortgage fraud case against him fell through.

A full-fledged administrative hearing was scheduled after the agreement didn't pan out for Ward, defense witnesses and witnesses provided by the Maryland Commissioner of Financial Regulation.

The commissioner investigated Ward and issued Ward, his company -- The Money Centre Ltd. -- and an employee a summary cease and desist order in December 2010.

The agreement made in a March administrative hearing stated Ward had to modify close to 50 mortgages in the 30 to 60 days following the agreement. He was also barred from lending to homebuyers in Maryland for at least seven years. Ward was also ordered to pay $75,000 to the state for civil penalties and investigation costs, and was to have refunded to borrowers any interest collected fraudulently.

Administrative Law Judge Laurie Bennett is in the process of reviewing the evidence and testimony presented during the hearings, and Tom Koehler, investigator for the commissioner, said he doesn't expect a decision to be made for at least a few months.

"There's quite a bit of evidence to go over," said Koehler, adding an administrative law judge usually has somewhere in the area of 90 days to go over the evidence and make a ruling. This is often followed by an appeals process, he said.

Among other allegations, the commissioner's investigation revealed that Ward failed to provide a "written contract, any other loan papers or disclosure forms" for the purchase of one house until the time of settlement, which violates Maryland and federal law.

In another complaint, Ward was accused of misappropriating at least $1,890 of fees collected and put in an escrow account intended for payment of outstanding property taxes.

Ward is accused of operating as both an unlicensed mortgage lender and an unlicensed mortgage loan originator.

Ward did not answer a voicemail asking for comment placed to his office Wednesday.

Source:  http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20111117/NEWS01/111170364/Former-mayoral-candidate-pay-75K-fine

Emergency Authorization Passed by Accomack Board

By Candy Farlow

Delinquent taxes were at the root of an issue addressed by the Accomack County Board of Supervisors Wednesday evening. County Attorney Mark Taylor advised the supervisors of a situation where work has been stopped on the replacement of a roof on a business in New Church.

The work was halted due to the fact that no building permit had been issued for the project as delinquent taxes are owed on the property. In the meantime, rainwater continues to pour into the building causing further damage.

Supervisor Grayson Chesser described the dire need for the roof replacement calling the situation a safety hazard. Referring to dilapidated property elsewhere in the county, Chesser said, "We dont want to be causing another Whispering Pines."

 Ultimately, the board voted to approve an emergency amendment to the ordinance regulating the issuance of building permits to allow them to avoid waste on an emergency basis. That action will allow the countys building department to permit the roof replacement despite the delinquency.

The amendment must be brought back for a public hearing and final action within 60 days.

Source;  shoredailynews.com

Frightened Dog Reunited With Family

I posted on Monday, November 14 about an accident that occurred on Route 13 South on Sunday November 13, 2011.

None of the occupants were injured but the family's Golden Retreiver ran. Fire and emergency crews searched for the dog but were not  able to locate it.

I am happy to report that the dog was found the following day and has been reunited with its owner.

Thanks for your calls and emails of concern.

Pocomoke Ramps Up Christmas Cheer

Thank you Mayor Morrison for deciding to go the extra mile for downtown Pocomoke!  I remember many years of Christmas' in downtown Pocomoke and I know how enchanting they can be.  What a wonderful idea Mayor Morrison, Angela Manos, (Pocomoke City Downtown Coordinator), and everyone else that has added some small idea to this week of an enchanted Christmas.  (I've never ridden in a sleigh and I can't wait!)

Written by

Brian Shane

Staff Writer

POCOMOKE CITY -- When the Outer Banks hamlet of Manteo, N.C., held its latest Christmas tree lighting last December, the light bulbs went off for Bruce Morrison, too.

"They're this tiny little town," said the first-term Pocomoke City mayor, who has had a home there for years, "and I saw them bring out 1,000 people for a Christmas tree lighting, and I thought, why can't we do this in Pocomoke?"

Inspired by what he saw, Morrison has masterminded a brand-new holiday experience for his downtown.

They're loosely calling it Christmas Week in Pocomoke, and organizers hope the old-fashioned holiday celebration will be the start of a grand annual tradition for the Friendliest Town on the Eastern Shore.

"I see other small towns doing things -- Berlin doing things, Snow Hill doing things -- I need to step up and think out of the box to do things for our town," he said.

It will begin Nov. 28 with the annual Pocomoke Christmas Parade, an event that's stood on its own for almost 40 years. Other holiday events are being scheduled during that week, including home tours.

The festivities wrap up on Dec. 2 with "An Old-Fashioned Christmas Evening" in front of City Hall, where Santa Claus will be visiting, a bonfire will be roaring and a horse-drawn carriage will be touring the holiday decorations.

"It was something I've been thinking about," Morrison said. "I've been trying to find ways to promote our downtown. This was my whole thing when I became mayor -- I was going to work on revitalizing downtown Pocomoke. We need people to visit and come eat and do things in our town."

Angela Manos, Pocomoke's downtown coordinator, says the town hopes to build momentum on the success of other revitalization efforts, including their Fall Festival.

"This is the first real Christmas event we've had outside of the parade," she said. "We think that it's important, not only for the business leaders and officials to believe in what we're doing, but also the residents. If the residents don't feel good about their town, we're not going to have the visitors come, so we need both."

Manos said they considered having some sort of festival of lights, but it was too expensive. Rather, they are considering buying one piece of light-up animation, which will be placed along the river for display.

"When we were thinking of this event, we were thinking of that movie 'A Christmas Story,'" Manos added. "It seems like collectively, everyone loves that movie. We thought it would be so nice to have a warm feeling around Christmastime, like it was in the '50s. We really want to build on the collective goodwill and spirit that's around the holidays."

She said the primary focus of Christmas Week is to ensure residents are enjoying their downtown.

"You talk to a lot of people who have been residents of Pocomoke City their entire lives, they talk about yesteryear a lot. When people talk about Pocomoke City as a downtown, they talk about Mayberry. Even the younger generation, they like the idea of having a quaint downtown. That community spirit that you know your neighbor, you can count on your neighbor, so we're trying to return to that."

The Downtown Pocomoke Association is working with the city, and already a handful of stores are committed to participating in the event.

They include Enchanted Florist, Lusby's Appliances, Mar-Va Theater, Robinanne's Quilting Service, Salty Dog Grooming, Scher's Bridal and the Delmarva Discovery Center. Several free activities, as well as free s'mores and hot dogs, will be available. Meeting Santa Claus also will be free.

Downtown businesses will be collecting canned goods for the Samaritan Shelter. Bringing a can to the Christmas event gets a person a free glass of wine or soda.

Source;  http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20111117/WCT06/111170329/Pocomoke-ramps-up-Christmas-cheer?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Worcester County Times|p

New Jersey Student, Suspended For Wearing Confederate Flag Sweatshirt

It goes without saying that wearing historically racist symbols should never be in vogue, right? Well, 14-year-old Torri Albrecht had to learn that lesson the hard way.

The eighth-grader from New Jersey says she was suspended from Melvin H. Kreps Middle School for wearing a Confederate flag sweatshirt to class. But she later said she was suspended for being "disrespectful in her refusal to take it off."

Albrecht, who was born in Virginia and lived there for only a year, believes that the Confederate flag is simply a representation of Southern heritage and that school is at fault for making her remove it. Jane West, Albrecht's mother, stands by her daughter's clothing choice and has threatened to sue. Albrecht has received online death threats after she began to make news.

"The bottom line is there's no proof that anyone complained about the sweatshirt or that my daughter was disrespectful about taking it off. The only thing I have proof of is that Blount lied to me," West told the Times of Trenton. 

Now West is demanding a formal apology to her daughter, a repeal of the suspension and permission to transfer Albrecht to another school in the district. "If I can't get those things I'm suing," she says.
This isn't the first time a fashion faux pas has gotten Albrecht into trouble. Last year she was approached by school officials for sporting an "I love boobies" bracelet and then again last month for wearing cat ears and whiskers on Halloween.

West says that she and her daughter are "far from racist." When asked by an ABC news anchor if she knew the racially charged history behind the flag, Albrecht replied "I don't pay attention. I don't know."
Sidenote: It doesn't help that Albrecht is sporting a version of the new haircut many are calling the "Hitler Youth" in the video above.

Source; Huffingpost.com

MarVa Theater This Weekend

THANK YOU To Our Soldiers.....cont...

 

PLEASE continue to send me the names of your soldier- veteran or active.

These are but a few of the names of those that have fought for and protected  this great land that we travel about freely in every day.  There should be no limitations on what it takes to protect them.  

  

"May no soldier go unloved."

from Soldiers' Angels

www.soldiersangels.org 

Thank you to each one of you.......

ACTIVE DUTY

Richard C. Brown, Jr., Air Force

Jacob Gibbons, SSgt. Air Force

Veterans

David Greene, Air Force

Patrick A. Dize, Navy

Richard S.  (Steve) Lawrence, Army, VietNam

Rick Choquette, Army

Bruce Glenn Merritt, Jr.,  Navy
Here's what his mom had to say about him:
 ("MT2/E5/SS He served on the USS Kamehameha and the West Virginia from 1990-1994.

Those that might not know the navy meaning of the above they stand for missile technician, second class, E5 pay grade, sub surface qualified.

Both submarines were nuclear....the big ones. He has seen parts of the world we will never see, including Scotland! He was so young and did an amazing job! We will always be proud of him and thank him for his service to our country.")

Roy Woodrow Wilkins, Navy


James Walter  Morris, Navy


Orland E. Howard, Marines, Korean Conflict


Buddy Hughes, Army, Korea


William Byron Schoolfield, Navy, WWII Pacific Theater


Byron Dorsey Schoolfield, Army WWI

Jack Sipilia, WWII, Navy (Retired)

Billy Hall, Army, Vietnam (Deceased)

James W. Maddox, WWII, Army (Deceased)

Art Sexton, Corporal, Marines, Vietnam


John Carey, Rank E-4, Airforce

Richard  Hitchens, Army and National Guard, 1st Sergeant, Vietnam, Afganistan (40 yrs. later)

Larry Fykes, Coast Guard, Senior Chief, Desert Storm, Operation Iraq, Deep Water Horizon (Katrina)

Lawrence Tull, Airforce, Captain

Kenneth Tull, Airforce, A2c

James B. Maddox, Army National Guard, Vietnam and Desert Storm

Jason Harris, Airforce, 167 AW, Kuwait

Larry Wood, Navy

Paul Hill, Navy, Chief, WWII


Michael Hill, Navy

William Byrd, III Cpl E4, First Marine Brigade, Vietnam

Michael Coutu, Navy AZ3 (SCW)


Nicholas Jones, Marines, PFC

Cornell Ginn, Air Force, Master Sgt. E-7 Veteran of Foreign Wars

This is just a start.  There are so many more names out there.............PLEASE send them to me.  Help me keep this list of names of our brave American men and women growing  so everyone will know who they are and how proud we are. 

 

Please fly your flags and yellow ribbons!  Let the active military know they are in our hearts and NOT forgotten.

TIME MACHINE Preview ... Abandoned Island's Former Life

A history you may not be aware of..on Hog Island, Va.

Read about it this Sunday on the Pocomoke Public Eye!


Do you have a local memory to share with PPE readers.. such as a big snow storm, a favorite school teacher, a local happening, something of interest your parents or grandparents told you about? It can be just a line or two or more if you wish. Your name won't be used unless you ask that it be. Send to tkforppe@yahoo.com and watch for it on a future TIME MACHINE posting!

Annual Pocomoke City Christmas Parade

A POCOMOKE CITY TRADITION

FOR OVER 35 YEARS

Monday night, November 28, 2011, Pocomoke City will be transformed into a “Winter Wonderland” as Pocomoke City plays host to one of Delmarva’s largest nighttime Christmas parades.

Always held on the first Monday night after Thanksgiving, the Pocomoke parade has become an Eastern Shore tradition and will attract over 100 units from Maryland, Delaware and Virginia along with thousands of spectators.

Each year the parade features marching bands representing high and middle schools from seven counties in three states.  Also featured will be beautifully decorated and lighted floats entered by schools, civic organizations, churches, and commercial enterprises.

 

Clowns, marching units, fire departments,

equestrian units,

and of course Santa Claus

will round out the two-hour event, slated to kick-off

at 7:00 p.m. sharp. 

The route will take the parade north on Market Street

beginning at  14^th Street  and ending at the Pocomoke River.

                                         

In the event of inclement weather, the parade will be postponed until Tuesday, November 29, at 7:00 p.m.

Deadline to register in November 25th
For more info: http://pocomokechristmasparade.com/Home_Page.html

SHORE BEEF and BBQ SPECIAL

THURSDAY SPECIAL

MADE BY

SHORE BEEF and BBQ

Beef Brisket Sandwich/ w Side

Drink ~ $7.50

~ ALL DAY ~

Annual Winter Watermen's Festival

Winter Watermen's Festival

Delmarva Discovery Center

December 10th

10 AM to 4 PM

Join the Delmarva Discovery Center for our 2nd annual Winter Watermen's Festival. The Winter Watermen's Festival is a celebration of our Delmarva heritage. Local watermen will share their stories from 11 AM - 1 PM. We'll have delicious food samples from local favorites such as Bill's Seafood, Watermen's Inn, the Upper Deck, Don's Seafood & Chicken House, the Crusty Crab, and Bay Queen Galley. Local artists will be displaying and selling their work as well!
 New to the Festival are wine from Bishop's Stock and beer from Burley Oak Brewery!

This is the perfect time for holiday shopping and celebrating Delmarva!
Don't miss out! 

Event is free with paid admission.

 

Phone Scam In Accomack County- Caller Posing As Law Enforcement

According to Sheriff Todd Godwin, the Accomack County Sheriff's Office has recently received reports of alleged fraud involving victims who received phone calls from an individual portraying themselves as a law enforcement officer. The caller in these cases claims that the victims' family members are in need of money for various reasons, and the money is being requested to be sent through Western Union to a specified location.

It is recommended that if anyone receives a phone call of this nature, attempt to speak with the family member who is allegedly in need, as well as obtain the identity of the law enforcement officer by requesting the officers name, badge number and agency. This information could then be verified by contacting that law enforcement agency's phone number as it is listed in the phone book.

It is recommended that an individual never send any money, or give out any personal information, based on a phone call, email or by any other means, until the identity of the requester and the purpose of the request has been verified.

 If you receive a call of this nature, contact your local law enforcement agency for assistance.

Source;  shoredailynews.com