INSIDE SUFFOLK VIRGINIA

THERE IS HOPE

2011-11-14T17:54:00.002-05:00

It looks very much like this blog will disappear soon as there is no one with time enough to consider the comments, a decision had to be made on whether or not the comment was appropriate and contributive.

My original issue was the SCCA cost to taxpayers for getting it off the ground and an annual half million to nudge it along. All to the benefit of a small group of Suffolk citizens in need of local entertainment and what they decided was culture. To cover the failure of sufficient financial return the affluent participants conjured various activities that on the surface would widen the interest in broadening young minds. It, too, failed to attract an audience.

My hope as I leave the scene is that a strong City Council will demand success or let the SCCA die as has the plan for an expensive and absurd Dismal Swamp tourist display, and restoration of the Phoenix Bank to appease a handful that insist they care. May luck be with you.

SORRY, UNAVOIDABLE

2011-11-11T09:01:00.000-05:00

Maxine’s Message for Today….

I have been in many places, but I have never been in Cahoots. Apparently you can't go there alone. You have to be in Cahoots with someone. I've also never been in Cognito. I hear no one recognizes you there.
I have, however, been in Sane. They don't have an airport. You have to be driven there. I have made several trips there, thanks to my family, friends and those where I have worked. I would like to go to Conclusions, but you have to jump and I am not too much on physical activity anymore. I have also been in Doubt. That is a sad place to go and I try not to visit there too often. I've been in Flexible, but only when it was very important to stand firm. Sometimes I'm in Capable, and I go there more often as I'm getting older. One of my favorite places to be is in Suspense. It really gets the adrenalin flowing and pumps up the old heart. At my age I need all of the stimuli I can get.

Now ... if I can just avoid getting in Continent.

LITTLE BY LITTLE THAT FOOT IN THE DOOR

2011-11-10T04:09:00.000-05:00

President Obama and senior members of his staff met with eight religious leaders at the White House Wednesday to discuss protecting programs for the poor and vulnerable in deficit reduction and debt ceiling negotiations. I guess that Obama and liberals have no clue as to separation of church and state is about, but it makes very little difference when they are in power. Let's get this straight folks. Pastors who work for tax-exempt corporations are invoking the name of Jesus for political causes? Obama uses religion (non muslim) when its good for obtaining votes. He uses his Muslim roots when it benefits him and other Muslims.

By invoking Christian religious beliefs found in the Bible, do you think that Jesus would approve of this? Many of these so-called religious foundations and churches, many of these churches are on the dole themselves. The so called and titled "Reverend" Jeremiah Wright run multi-million-dollar operations taking money from Head Start and other federal programs.
Can anybody provide to me the addresses of the churches that Rev Al and the good Rev Jesse claims to lead. Exactly where are their churches located?
Churches are supposed to collect alms for the poor — not demand them from taxpayers.

As a liberal, shouldn’t Obama kick them out under the liberal interpretation of separation of church and state?

How come many veteran cemeteries can't use God in their services? How can chapels that are there are closed to families who's family member is being buried there and they want to use the chapel for prayer? If a cheerleader can’t say a prayer before a football game or a student wants to say a prayer at his or her graduation, why are these lobbyists allowed to invoke Jesus at the White House?

It's funny, I don’t recall Jesus ever being a stooge for the Roman government. There is NOTHING in the Gospels where Jesus advocates coercively taking money from anyone for any reason.
Come to think of it Invoking Jesus Christ while proclaiming support for the Muslim faith, does this not violate the tenets of Islam??? Obama might be the first US President to have a Fatwa issued against him if he continues dealing from the bottom of the deck like this.

I'VE GOT TO TAKE A BREAK

2011-11-04T14:05:00.001-04:00

As I turned 86 last March this old body of mine began acting its age. Like most men born in the early twenties it has been a long haul. All those steps, education, find spouse, first home, children, two depressions, a war; these together can wear down the mind that is finally looking for some rest. We came from Michigan to Suffolk in 1980, found a perfect spot on the water and began to understand the delightful southern accent. I wrote a column once or twice a week for the SNH, nearly 12 years, and joined Andy Damiani's RoundTableTalk. I got to know a bit about Suffolk and realized the then 50,000 citizens were set to explode to a population of 85,000 today. We hoped we could provide an exchange between those who govern and those that elect them. We know from our stats that over 64,000 computers have logged on to our site. We have seen many debates on many subjects, some of them showing all possible sides of the question. We have been both applauded and "nailed" by the same person. We always expected to be challenged and often wrong. We gave it our best shot.

We will allow both Posts and Comments until February, our annual decision date. You have that much time to offer suggestions, get in a last effort to back your theory. Feel free to write a Post in the Comment space and we will make it a Post if you so instruct us. As for me, I'm just plain worn out after spending months in hospitals and or rehab centers, May through August. I've got to pay attention to what the doctors, nurses, friends and family tell me. And I will.

A SIMPLE QUESTION

2011-10-26T06:07:00.000-04:00

Obviously Obama will again run for the presidency without opposition. What democrat would dare?

What man or woman will top the ticket a year from now for the Conservatives and a short reason why.

Hope 'n' Change: CLASS Dismissed

2011-10-21T12:21:00.002-04:00

The Obama administration last week shelved CLASS, a major portion of ObamaCare, because they could no longer defend its inevitable insolvency. CLASS (Community Living Assistance Services and Supports), a leftist pet project even before it was included in ObamaCare in 2009, was designed to operate as a self-sustaining voluntary insurance program that workers would pay into during their careers, then collect from if they came to require long-term care later in life. CLASS could operate without a taxpayer subsidy only if large numbers of healthy workers joined it, which was unlikely given their current coverage and the program's high premiums. Thus, disabled beneficiaries would drain the program and make it insolvent unless the federal government mandated participation or created an additional payroll tax to fund it, two possibilities with which Democrats are perfectly comfortable.

Democrats knew well of this major flaw in CLASS during the ObamaCare debate in 2009, yet continued to push for its inclusion because it was the linchpin of their argument that ObamaCare was not only deficit-neutral but would actually cut the deficit. They claimed that CLASS would reduce the deficit by $80 billion over 10 years, accounting for 40 percent of ObamaCare's total supposed savings. In reality, in 10 years, the program would have collapsed by virtually every calculation. But by then, it would be too late, and the American people would have been stuck with yet another unfunded entitlement.
The CLASS disaster was averted due to a Republican provision that called for actuarial analysis before its implementation, proving the program's solvency over a 75-year period before its implementation. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius finally admitted last week that this benchmark was unattainable, and now the administration wants to "revisit" CLASS. Senate and House Republicans, however, have introduced new legislation calling for outright repeal. Strangely, Obama has threatened to veto legislative repeal. CLASS's downfall is a clear demonstration of big government hubris, further proof that all of ObamaCare should also be consigned to the scrap heap.

--From The Patriot Post (http://patriotpost.us/). It's free, it's right, and I've been following this site for almost ten years! I'm convinced that The Patriot Post presents the best and clearest analysis of governmental intentions and mistakes that have such enormous impacts on our future prosperity and the freedoms guaranteed to us in the real (not "living") U.S. Constitution as I've found anywhere. Should be read regulary by citizens and elected officials alike who understand that government was never intended to be the peoples' overseers but protectors of all of our Constitutional rights as public servants!

WHY I VOTED DEMOCRAT LAST ELECTION

2011-10-20T08:40:00.000-04:00

I voted Democrat because I believe oil companies' profits of 4% on a gallon of gas are obscene but the government taxing the same gallon of gas at 15% isn't. I believe the government will do a better job of spending the money I earn than I would. OK, I'm too irresponsible to own a gun and I know the local police are all I need to protect me from murderers and thieves. I voted Democrat because I believe that people who can't tell us if it will rain on Friday can tell us that the polar ice caps will melt away in ten years if I don't start driving a Prius. And I voted Democrat because I'm not concerned about the slaughter of millions of babies through abortion so long as we keep all death row inmates alive.

I proudly voted Democrat because I think illegal aliens have a right to free health care, education, and Social Security benefits. And I believe that business should not be allowed to make profits for themselves. They need to break even and give the rest away to the government for redistribution as the democrats see fit. I voted Democrat because I believe liberal judges need to rewrite the Constitution every few days to suit some liberal fringe kooks who would never get their agendas past the voters. And I voted Democrat because it is unlikely that I'll ever have another point of view.

THE WAY THINGS OUGHT TO BE

2011-10-18T07:28:00.001-04:00

The Suffolk Rotary Club and Peanut Proud partnered recently to lend a hand by donating funds and collecting and assembling goods to create 48 baskets for teachers left with nothing following the devastating spring tornados in Hackleburg, Ala. “Both the Suffolk Rotary Club and Peanut Proud believe in assisting with humanitarian efforts in our local community and around the world. This partnership is an example of the wonderful humanitarian work the Suffolk Rotary Club does for the greater community.” AMEN we say, and most Civic organizations find ways to raise funds to give.

I’m proud to be a member of the Chuckatuck Ruitan where thousands of dollars from an annual Oyster Roast are distributed to worthy causes. And Chuckatuck Firemen devote themselves to a pair of Fish Frys. I, like the Tourist Director, can’t come up with figures proving anything, but I will wager the total raised and spent in Suffolk would make us all proud.

2011-10-18T07:09:00.000-04:00

YxAAAAAAAA money The Suffolk Rotary Club learned of the teachers’ needs at a school in the town. from Rotarians representing Birdsong Peanuts who were familiar with Peanut Proud’s efforts. Some groups have helped students in Alabama, but Rotarians in Suffolk wanted to help the teachers get the basic supplies they need to operate their classrooms, according to Suffolk Rotary Club President Kenda Council.

The baskets were filled with products such as pads of paper, pencils, calendars, paper towels and markers. While Peanut Proud donated the majority of the items in the baskets, several Suffolk companies, including TowneBank, Planters, Suffolk Insurance, Lipton Tea, Birdsong Peanuts and Nansemond-Suffolk Academy, contributed items.

Led by Suffolk Rotary Club service project Co-Chairman Betsy Totten, eight club members assembled baskets in the offices of Birdsong Peanuts. The baskets will be transported to Hackleburg this month. As signified by the motto “Service Above Self,” Rotary’s main objective is service — in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world. “The Suffolk Rotary Club was proud to partner with Peanut Proud to help lend a hand to the teachers in Hackleburg — and we were drawn to them, as they are a peanut community, as well,” Council said.

“Both the Suffolk Rotary Club and Peanut Proud believe in assisting with humanitarian efforts in our local community and around the world. This partnership is an example of the wonderful humanitarian work the Suffolk Rotary Club does for the greater community.”

BETTER TAKE ANOTHER LOOK

2011-10-17T05:05:00.001-04:00

Citizen Chris Dove blew dust off the city ordnances when he asked Council if they were legally binding. The Mayor did not know, Council members dodged the question because they had never been asked that one before. Not even Curtiss Milteer would take a shot, and he knows everything. Everyone expected the Mayor to reassure they were binding but she knew better than to ask the City Attorney who knew all ordnances are NOT legally binding. Was it an innocent question by Mr. Dove or did he know they were not binding. If some are not then maybe none are. Can you imagine the chaos that could follow when individuals and attorneys look back at decisions rendered to their displeasure. There have always been questions about the “sensibility” of many

rules in the UDO. We owe Mr. Dove applause for stirring the pot.

TIME FOR CONGRESS TO STOP BEING “ABOVE” THE REST OF AMERICANS.

2011-10-12T19:09:00.002-04:00

1. Begin by giving up your unfair and unearned special pension and instead receive ordinary salary while in office.

2. Congress (past, present & future) must participate in Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security System and Congress participates EXACTLY like other citizens. This money may not be used for any other purpose. Congress participates with the American people.

3. Congress can purchase their own retirement plan, just as all Americans do.

4. Congress will no longer vote themselves pay raises. Congressional pay will rise by the lower of CPI or 3%.

5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the American people.

6. Congress must equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people.

7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/12. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen. Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is supposed to be an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s), then go home and back to work.
Who in hell do they think they are?

MAKES SENSE

2011-10-11T20:01:00.003-04:00

Here is an interesting letter in the Australian Shooter Magazine, which I quote:

"If you consider that there has been an average of 160,000 troops in the Iraq Theater of operations during the past 22 months, and a total of 2,112 deaths, that gives a firearm death rate of 60 per 100,000.

The firearm death rate in Washington , DC is 80.6 per 100,000 for the same period. That means you are about 25 per cent more likely to be shot and killed in the US capital, which has some of the strictest gun control laws in the U.S. , than you are in Iraq .

Conclusion: The U.S. should pull out of Washington"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

          WAKE UP AMERICA!!!! REMEMBER ALL THE OTHER PRESIDENTS WITH THEIR DOGS COMING OFF THE PLANE WITH THEM???
          NOT THE OBAMA'S...

                                         If this doesn't tick you off....nothing will....
                                         Bo has never traveled in the same means of transportation with the First Family.

                             I guess since they had to swallow their pride and use the Gulfstream there just wasn't enough room for the dog and one other person.

I REMEMBER ELIZIBETH McCRORY

2011-10-09T13:26:00.002-04:00

I never did know how to spell her last name or her job title but she seemed to be in City Hall just to help new business owners find their way through the paper maze that appeared to be spread all over the city. She was happy doing it whether she took part in the silver shovel ceremony or was left out to make room for higher ups. She left and many still don't know why.

There are enumerable ways for city employees to assist new and/or struggling business owners that are risking time, money and labor. It seems that there is always another city hall permit to obtain or inspection to pass when the new owner is focusing on income. Those who have attempted to invest in our airport come to mind-being helped by one department and stymied by another. And there are other ways to impede progress.

I have a friend up in a Michigan small town that just bought out a restaurant. He cleaned, remodeled, painted, rejuvenated, and hired more than worked there before, an ideal improvement to Suffolk. But one night there was an altercation between two young men whose skin color did not match. Police were involved and calmed the situation. But to maintain peace the police are still involved, they show up too often, keeping too much of an eye on the place. Regular customers are intimidated by their presence and can’t help but wonder why the cops haven't let go. My friend in Michigan finally went back to city hall to demand relief from an over eager police force. Anyone here in Suffolk feel they have problems with city hall or Departments?

MASTERFUL STROKE BY OBAMA------HE THINKS

2011-10-07T17:51:00.000-04:00

Real eye opener, Always suspected that the Fast & Furious plot was a political scheme hatched to raise the public’s ire against legally held guns in this country. Just another one of Eric Holder’s botched political gambles I suspect but I hope this one sticks to him and forces him out of office! But unfortunately, I doubt it. Too many of the “Republicans” in Congress are no more supportive of conservative values and individual responsibility than are the Democrats. The Republicans just want to get back in charge so that they can overspend and start diverting our treasury to their political supporters rather than watching the Democrats do the same thing to their own.

It’s amazing that the left gets to frame the debate in terms that invariably denigrate individual responsibility, gun ownership, property ownership, wealth building, the sanctity of innocent life as opposed to crying over the SOBs rightly placed on death row for praying on their own species, and people in “flyover country” who still believe in teaching our children fundamental values and principles that—yes—come from the bible, our Founding documents, and from our Judeo-Christian heritage.

"is" staff

ALL THOUGHT OUT

2011-10-04T18:08:00.000-04:00

One problem with a plan by Virginia to partner with a private company to build a new Route 460 is the cost. Even allowing for rather high tolls it still requires that the State contribute half a billion to build the road a lot of money especially when the highway will be under private control that can change the tolls.
McDonnell insists the new road is vital to the safety of Southeast Virginia and to the future economic viability of the commonwealth as a whole. The current 460, a primary evacuation route for Hampton Roads, is not capable of handling mass evacuations ---too crowded to provide safe and efficient way to transport goods to and from Virginia’s ports. And as the state builds more port capacity in Portsmouth and warehousing in Suffolk the problems with congestion will only get worse. Apparently the Virginia Port Authority’s new board of directors understands what’s at stake. That board discussed this week a plan to contribute $5 million a year. They are talking $5 — up to $250 million — toward the project’s cost, starting in 2013, using funds it would have gotten from its share of the state’s Transportation Trust Fund. Members of the board are expected to discuss the matter in more detail at a meeting in October and vote on it in November.
Since there really is so much at stake for the Virginia Port Authority, buying in to the Route 460 project would be an appropriate move that would help ensure the long-term viability of the ports and of the businesses springing up to support them. And using money already earmarked for the ports to do so would help ensure that the project saddles Virginians with less debt. The new board of directors should approve the plan in November.

MILTEER WANTS EIGHT VOTING BOROUGHS

2011-10-02T08:04:00.001-04:00

He further added this original wise statement; “Now is the time to act,” Milteer said. “I think that if we want to do something, let’s not wait until the horse leaves the stable before we try to ride it. Let’s catch him in the stable and hook him up.” Wow, that motivating expression is almost as old as Curtiss. But like the answer most people approaching Council get, Milteer’s suggestion got no further discussion. Nor will it.
Literally thousands of Suffollk citizens have prepared themselves for the opportunity to stand at the lectern to plead their case. No matter how good or bad their presentation was, the standard reply by the Mayor is, “Thank you, next speaker. It is as though you were never there.

SMALL TOWN QUEEN REIGNS OVER 83000 OF US

2011-09-30T06:19:00.000-04:00

"IS" congratulates Rayvn Stringfield, new Queen of Suffolk's largest festivel. A top student in King Fork High School. I think back to the forties when twice as chairman of our annual four day festival I had to pick the Queen. In addition to the usual qualifications we could not allow a daughter of our Lion Club member compete. This alone potentially eliminated 50 high school girls. Nor would a girl with black skin even consider applying for the honor. I'm ashamed to say that in our town there were no people with black skin. It wasn't allowed by civic leaders. Nor could a black person passing though expect to be served in any resturant, or sleep in a motel. It could still be that way, we came south in 1972.

Even choosing between white girls was not easy. It is amazing how quick the pressure comes from parents, school teachers, politicians, etc. Not beholden to any of them I picked whom I considered right for the job. I'd like to know how it was done here.

PLAIN ORDINARY LIES OR JUST ANOTHER OBAMA ERROR

2011-09-29T05:46:00.002-04:00

As Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said earlier this year when federal judges first began to rule parts of the Health Law unconstitutional, “As recently as last week, the President said: ‘This law will lower premiums’, yet since its passage we continually hear the opposite: insurers across the country are raising premiums to cover the cost of all the new mandates they’ll have to comply with.

Most Americans have opposed this bill from the start because they were skeptical of all the claims that were being made about what it would do. The process that was used to jam it through Congress made it even less popular. But the reality has been even worse than people feared. It violates the Constitution — which is reason enough to repeal it — it’s driving up premiums, increasing costs, and driving people off the plans they have. . . . Democrats made a lot of promises about this bill. Virtually every one has proved to be empty.” Employers must pay these increasing costs, therefore no increase in wages or other benefits.

SO THIS IS WHERE OBAMA LEARNED THAT

2011-09-28T22:20:00.000-04:00

“There are two ways to conquer and

enslave a nation.

One is by the sword. The other is by debt.”

John Adams 1826

A REAL EYE OPENER

2011-09-28T18:54:00.000-04:00

I have always suspected that the Fast & Furious plot was a political scheme hatched to raise the public’s ire against legally held guns. Just another one of Eric Holder’s botched political gambles I suspect but I hope this one sticks to him and forces him out of office! But no, too many of the “Republicans” in Congress are no more supportive of conservative values and individual responsibility than are the Democrats. The Republicans just want to get back in charge so that they can overspend and start diverting our treasury to their political supporters rather than watching the Democrats do the same thing to their own.

"IS" Staff

TICKETS ARE ONLY $6O

2011-09-27T06:17:00.000-04:00

Here’s your chance to booze it up at the tax payer provided facility in the company of Suffolk’s elite, the most politically privileged classes of a society. No need for a designated driver, what cop in his right mind would approach anyone involved in this annual affair and suggest blowing into a machine, or walk a line this time of night especially if that person were attired in rented tux or formal gown, It just isn’t done if the event dispensing hard stuff is to foster any part of culture. After all, they are guilty only of a little fun while raising funds for those who, hopefully, will follow in their footsteps.

DON'T PASS THIS UP

2011-09-26T21:56:00.001-04:00

Lovers of wine, beer, food and art can make themselves at home at the Art D’Vine fundraiser for the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts.
The event, which is put on by the SCCA Foundation Board, will be held at the center at 7 p.m. Oct. 7. “It’s not only a wonderful time to socialize and have fun with members of the community and meet new people, but it’s fun,” said Susan Rawls, the co-chair for the event. “It’s just become one of the events that I look forward to every year, and so many other people do too.” The fifth annual Art D’Vine will feature a large wine selection with food pairings, a beer tasting, live music and both silent and live auctions. “It’s our major fundraiser for the center for the year,” Rawls said. “The reason we have this is to, of course, keep our building running. Our big goal is to keep our education department thriving.” She said the center hopes to raise as much as $75,000 to continue to provide arts classes for both children and adults.

from the suffollk news herald

IT HAS BEGUN

2011-09-26T13:45:00.001-04:00

In the wake of Bin Laden's death, Radical Muslims have gone on a rampage in Southern California, killing anyone who's a legal US citizen. Police fear the death toll could reach as high as 12. I will keep you posted on future developments.

THE SPOTLIGHT IS ON

2011-09-26T05:08:00.002-04:00

“The Scottish folk artist, who will play the season opener at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts next week, intentionally incorporates words and subject matter into his songs that nobody else has used in a song before. That from the SNH and it brings additional words to my mind, like squeezing nearly half a million of collected taxes and then expect them to pay for tickets at $35 to $45. and come early for dinner. Not exactly Times Square prices but high enough to keep even culture seekers from filling the seats.
“I do try to use language that isn’t in other songs,” he said. “I try to write about subject material other people haven’t written about. There are a lot of words that never get to be in songs, and I think it’s unfair to them.” So said the season’s first star, a one man show.

Unfair to words that never get used in a song? Now that is culture

GOP BETTER WATCH OUT FOR AN END RUN

2011-09-24T22:50:00.000-04:00

Democrats can still win the next election. If, for example, a strong run by a prominent anti-war leftist, such as Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio or former Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, would expose Mr. Obama’s weakness, his plummeting popularity among the party’s base. Outside of blacks, key constituencies of the Democratic Party - feminists, labor unions, gays and lesbians, Hispanics and Jews - are frustrated with his performance. They hunger for change. That person is Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. A liberal candidate probably could win 37 percent, maybe even 40 percent of the vote, against Mr. Obama in Iowa or New Hampshire. Inexorable pressure would build for Mrs. Clinton to throw her hat into the ring, casting herself as the Democrats’ savior. If she were to run, she would beat Mr. Obama in a primary fight - thereby fundamentally altering the 2012 election landscape. The presidential campaign would be transformed from a probable Republican landslide to a horse race. A Hillary-Perry or Hillary-Romney face-off would be easy for the GOP to lose.

mment

Class war at its best.

2011-09-24T15:47:00.002-04:00

The folks who are getting the free stuff, don't like the folks who are paying for the free stuff,

Because the folks who are paying for the free stuff, can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own stuff,

And, the folks who are paying for the free stuff, want the free stuff to stop.

And the folks who are getting the free stuff, want even more free stuff on top of the free stuff they are already getting!

Now...

The people who are forcing the people who Pay for the free stuff,
have told the people who are RECEIVING the free stuff,
that the people who are PAYING for the free stuff,
are being mean, prejudiced, and racist.

So...

The people who are GETTING the free stuff, have been convinced they need to hate the people who are paying for the free stuff,

By the people who are forcing some people to pay for their free stuff and giving them the free stuff in the first place.

We have let the free stuff giving go on for so long that there are now more people getting free stuff than paying for the free stuff.

Now understand this. All great democracies have committed financial suicide somewhere between 200 and 250 years after being founded. The reason?

The voters figured out they could vote themselves money from the treasury by electing people who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for electing them.

BTW, the United States officially became a Republic in 1776, 235 years ago.

The number of people now getting free stuff outnumbers the people paying for the free stuff.

We have one chance to change that in 2012. Failure to change that essentially means the end of the United States we inherited. It wasn't perfect; it needed some change. But one Party thought tearing it down ("fundamental change" without explanation if I recall) was the answer!

ELECTION 2012 IS COMING. A Nation of Sheep Breeds a Government of Wolves! Take a Stand!!!

TALK TO YOUR CONGRESSMAN OR ELECT A NEW ONE.

2011-09-23T15:50:00.002-04:00

----- MEDICARE PREMIUM INCREASE

For those of you who are on Medicare, read the article below. It's a short but important that you probably haven't heard about in the mainstream news.

They will RAISE the monthly price per person as scheduled by Obama's Plan.

Annual cost per person

2011 $1157

2012 $1250

2013 $1442

2014 $4548 that is nine grand plus

Welcome to Government By Spoiled Children!

2011-09-21T12:58:00.003-04:00

So I read again that Congress is threatening to shut down the government because they can’t reach agreement over how to cover disaster response funding following a series of disasters this year--Joplin, Irene, Lee, etc. Republicans are willing to fund FEMA for what they can document needing but insist that the funds need to come out of existing programs. Democrats predictably argue that any unexpected expenses be covered by more borrowing and increasing the national debt and that they will shut down the govenment rather than pull a dime out of other programs! Sound only too familiar?

This is Congress today as we know it! They refuse to conduct the People's Business anymore because they are too busy playing partisan political games. Both Parties overspend like drug addicts and whenever the American public’s frustration generates more heat than Congress can ignore, Republicans pretend to start looking for areas to cut spending but always fail to sell even the most common sense cuts to the American Public. As their dancing partners, the Democrats invariably pull up the same critical areas of Government: Defense, Disaster Relief, Border Security, Social Security, and Medicare and frame the argument as if these are the ONLY places where funding cuts could POSSIBLY come from--just to guarantee the American public gets as irritated as possible! And it's no different at the State or municipal level folks. Remember Curtis at this year's City Council budget meeting? Paraphrasing because I don't have it in front of me, "We can't possibly make a change to any item of the city's budget without the whole house of cards falling down!" Right! Seriously???

As this charade takes place multiple times a year without effective actions to address the overspending and the lack of a rainy day fund in the first place, both Parties remain clueless to explain why public support for the Tea Party is exploding and why Tea Party supporters seem to be the only people with common sense! All I can say is that if the Republicans are really interested in cutting spending but are unable to convince the American public that there are HUNDREDS of places in the Federal, State, and municipal budgets across the country where the majority of spending is inefficient if not wasteful, going into programs that don’t work or aren’t even needed, or don't fall under the Constitutional responsibility of Government in the first place, the Republican leadership needs to be sacked and sent home! When the Democrats get away with saying that we can't cover emergency Disaster Recovery expenses by cutting wasteful or lower priority spending in countless other programs, and the Republicans are incapable of articulating the absurdity of such a position to the voters, none of these fools deserve to remain in Office. Cut their benefits and cushy retirement programs and send them all back to the private sector to figure out how people really decide between what’s necessary and what’s nice when they have only a set amount of money to work with.

This country desperately needs a Balanced Budget Amendment since the children we elect to represent us only know how to throw temper tantrums whenever We the People tell them we can’t afford everything they can think of!

JUST LIKE THAT

2011-09-21T06:21:00.000-04:00

The Suffolk Planning Commission could have said “no” just as easy as they said "yes" and not approve a new floodplain plan. For crying out loud, as we used to say, if 554 homes are to be added to a flood zone and 700 being removed, what technology were they using back when they determined the original flood plain? Or have we since then been hit with earthquakes and a tsunami. Charles Jordan’s property lies in the flood zone in the new maps. He has hassled the Council at every public meeting. “I stand before you today not in favor of this ordinance, because the maps are wrong and I can prove it.” So where is this going?

BE READY TO FIGHT THIS TRAVESTY

2011-09-20T22:09:00.002-04:00

It is possible Suffolk city officials are well into devising plans to force home-owners with private wells to cough up fees or taxes for using ground water. Of course it matters not what you paid for drilling the well, or the cost of bringing water from 500 feet down to your home via piping, pumps and electric motors. It is easy for the powerful elected to ignore all but the fact that your water is free, while those without wells pay through the nose for it and sewers as well. Then there is the additional cost of maintaining a well. Somehow they will figure it is merely they are “going greener.” Watch out for these people, you didn’t plan on paying for your trash pickup or being forced to recycle. Officials might better study the opportunities to cut programs that aren’t working, aren’t constitutional, and not the government’s responsibility in the first PLACE. Forget getting even more revenue from the public.

I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THAT

2011-09-19T21:19:00.000-04:00

I brought up the subject of recycling several times in my recent travels and the majority tells me they are unhappy with the additional stress and labor of being forced to comply. First off the color of the container is garish, in no way connected with nature, more with Disney Land or a Walmart birthday cake.. You cannot hide the damn thing. Twenty lashes to the city committee that chose the blue purple cow. If we are going green why are the containers blue? Most of us would paint ours a color that blends with nature, well we would if we were sure the crime would not include jail time. Unless you live in a castle there is no room inside your dwelling and two of those tubs side by each are the size of a third bathroom.
Here is how it works at our home. At the bottom of the five steps down to the garage are two medium size plastic trashcans, one labeled trash, the other, recyclable. From the top of the stairs it is an easy shot with a can or bottle. But paper seldom follows the flight plan in to the second barrel and requires an occasional assist from others after. They, when full, must be hand-carried; transferred to the biggie, hell on older folks. In our late eighties it is a life change.

COMPUTER CRASH CAUSES DELAY

2011-09-19T18:44:00.001-04:00

I imagine the crash was caused by the gentleman whose stuff seldom gets by us because of the insulting comments he writes about a certain Councilman. It appears that truth means little in some of the lengthy diatribe. At any rate we were down a week so I went fishing. I managed to let large catfish drag two rods and reels comepletely off the dock before I could react. So maybe you have wondered why your comments weren't published until today. We noticed one writer keeps changing his name, the one mentioned above.

We took the sick computer over to Express Solutions for quick service and got it in two days. And the price was right. Sorry about the time devoted to "IS", it was skimpy at best.

BLUE COW WOULD HAVE MADE A GOOD FOX HOLE

2011-09-12T15:59:00.007-04:00

Blue Cow would have served as a foxhole in World War II. And where to put it. Short women can't open it or pour in trash from a smaller container. My wife hates the color swearing it is purple, and has no idea where to hide it. But there was a happy note attached to one of the four dumped off in our tiny subdivision and the owner stuffed it into his pocket. It referred to a way to earn $25 each month for recycling. If you have one of these please tell us what it says. I called him and he said he was checking it out on web. Did it really hint we could make $25 while spending just spending seventeen? Well, he just called back to say it is one of those make points deals,you won't get rich but you might become a better recycler. I'm getting flack from a son-in-law for having said I have never recycled. I wasn't bragging, just admitting green guilt. What I said long ago was that I'd never recycle until it meant many jobs for people. Now it does. RecyclingPerks click on that and you figure.

THE WAY IT WAS AND STILL IS

2011-09-12T06:04:00.000-04:00

Thoughts of the past during a different scene early Thursday morning when at least 500 Longshoremen and sympathizers stormed the Port of Longview and broke windows in the guard shack, according to Longview Police Chief Jim Duscha. As men wielding baseball bats and crowbars held six guards captive, others cut brake lines on boxcars and dumped grain, the chief said.
A freight train carrying 107 cars of corn from Splitrock, Minn., destined for the Longview port was vandalized, spilling grain from 72 of the freight cars onto the tracks, said Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway spokesman Gus Melonas. Oh yes, the good old days. How to get and keep your job.

CONTINUING FOUNTAIN OF CASH

2011-09-11T23:14:00.003-04:00

City Council ended efforts to build an emergency access road to the Hollywood neighborhood and a trail in the Eclipse community, saying both projects are becoming too expensive because of certain hardships.

Impossible, it could not have happened, Council, at the suggestion of someone stopped work on an emergency access road to Hollywood and multi-use trail up in Eclipse just because they were getting too expensive. Not impossible in Suffolk another $1,900,000 turned up in the books and they spent it without

discussion on other projects they considered more important. Actually the money was just dollars allotted to other projects but never spent. But it’s amazing how often and how much spendable dollars turn up now and then.

SLOPPY BOOKKEEPING

2011-09-08T07:51:00.004-04:00

Here is an example of city government. They are flushed with pride when they bring out the silver shovels to celebrate the opening of a new tax producing business. Every dollar coming in counts when it appears our officials intends to spend them all. I’ll bet spender’s ears pricked up when the new assessor proclaimed that 35 of 46 organizations claiming the right to tax breaks have not filed for relief properly. It could mean that a closer look might result in kickbacks to the city spenders. Not just the current year, perhaps unfair tax breaks have been allowed for many years. We can assume this “error” in qualifying is no different than breaking a law but which “party” is responsible? Could that situation be why we suddenly acquired a new Assesssor?

MORE THAN LIKELY

2011-09-06T05:17:00.003-04:00

I admit to never having recycled before today and I am nearly 87. And knowing my wife as I do we have saved millions of gallons of clean fresh water. But that’s over now because there is no way she would toss out a glass or plastic can or bottle without washing or at least rinsing it. There will be no ketchup hiding in there or applesauce and I believe that idiosyncrasy is universal with women. So there is already an extra expense. I’m convinced both the Mayor and City Manager being distaff will also waste their time and water neatening up the used containers because not to could create threatening odors in the neighborhood. Another thought disturbs me…how and who separates the 90- gallon mess at the plant? Unless you are a recycling nut the stuff goes in the blue cow on a daily basis. In our case we won’t be dragging the behemoth to the street until it is full, giving the contents ample time to settle into inseperable layers, as has the Grand Canyon. Please note that in one of the comments to this post is a phone number you can call to arrange a tour of the recycling plant. Might be a good idea for your org.

WHAT'S THE PUNISHMENT THIS TIME AROUND

2011-09-04T04:28:00.002-04:00

There is little reason to point out that Raleigh Henderson Issacs is the Sheriff’s son, the Sheriff is not guilty by association or responsible for his son's behavior. The "boy” is 50 years old and his first arrest was in 2006. Many wonder why he was never properly punished unless they understand the probable relationship between prosecutors and elected officials. You must agree that this drunk driver still is one after many appearances before the law but the leniency is not the fault of the father. He more than likely was as embarassed as any father would be. But what this time, isn't everyone treated the same in our courts?

COUNCILMAN MIKE DUMAN RESPONDS

2011-09-01T21:47:00.001-04:00

Pock,

I will attempt to clarify the new 'Refuse Enterprise Fund' created during the budget process. It is still rather amazing to me how many of our citizens were surprised when the big blue cans started appearing at their doors. I have answered quite a few calls and hopefully this will help get the information out.

This should not be construed as an official response from the city, but merely an explanation as I understand it. Every attempt has been made to ensure the facts are correct, but nothing has been reviewed by city personnel to guarantee accuracy.

First, I think it is important to recognize that the 'refuse fund' transferred trash collection, recycling and related services from the operating budget to this dedicated fund. As such, it must be self supporting. The reasoning presented by its proponents is to better contend with the eventual dissolution of SYPSA and/or changes that will occur once the city's contract expires.

I will attempt to "explain the math". Each household (approx. 32,000) is being charged $17.50 per month. This equates to approx. $6.7M income. The expenses are approx. $4.2M- $4.3M that was transferred from the operating budget to pay for day to day trash collection services plus the cost of TFC recycling is $4 per month per household which equates to approx. $1.5M. In addition, the hazardous waste program costs about $65,000 and the recycling convenience centers are budgeted at $70,000. Add all this together and you get expenses totaling roughly $5.9M. If my math is correct, that leaves about $800,000. This balance would be accommodate contingencies such as rising fuel costs, etc.

It should be noted that the recycling fee of $4 per month will appear on your semi-annual real estate tax bill.

I hope this assists your readers in their comprehension of this newly created fund and related costs.

Those of you who are cognizant of local government actions know my position and how I voted on these issues. If anyone would like to discuss this or any other matter further please call me at (757) 449-9688.

IT AINT FAIR

2011-09-01T02:08:00.001-04:00

Coincidental? My neighbor reports a fifty dollar increase in his Charter costs and then they went off the air for several days. Perhaps it was deliberate so he would more appreciate the programming when it came back on. A more important event would be the city finding some competition for Charter. Is one cable company to choose from a smart way to go? We were victims in Suffolk when the power went off for several days and we were forced to pay $3.53 per gallon of gas to run generators or see freezers full of expensive food go bad. While residents on King's Fork lost no power or cable. Is it really those holes in the ozone?

C'MON CITY FINANCE PEOPLE, HELP US OUT WITH NUMBERS

2011-08-25T10:05:00.004-04:00

According to Suffolk supplied numbers there are 29,993 Households in Suffolk with an average of 2.6 persons including the little babies whose diapers have not yet been declared trash or recyclable paper. Using $17. as the monthly cost for this this wonderful program it can generate half a million each month or a little over six million for each year. Seems that the recycled materials are worth a ton of money and that many blue cows will produce many tons of very valuable goods. Who gets it is the simple question. "IS" will wait a reasonable length of time for answer from the city. Most city officials deny reading "IS" but we know better. Any Council member will do.

JUST A BUMP

2011-08-23T17:08:00.000-04:00

SO MANY IN WASHINGTON CAN'T TELL THE TRUTH WE OFFER SOLID PROOF THAT AN EARTHQUAKE TOOK PLACE IN THE NEAR VICINITY OF PRESIDENT OBAMA'S OFFICE. THE PRESIDENT ESCAPED DEATH BY CAMPAIGNING.

WELCOME ABOARD

2011-08-23T06:23:00.000-04:00

Remember all the nice things Selena and Mayor Linda had to say about the newly named financial director, Dale Walker, as he asended to the throne of books that keep track of our dwindling supply of dollars. This is not a test of your memory but doesn’t it seem that the ink on his contract could not have been dry on Febuary 6, the day he joined the long list of forced to resign employees that previously had been toasted for their expertise. The odds on the new director, Deborah H. White, being a Suffolk employee longer than Dale have improved if only because she is female. And she is also experienced and attractive. Picture from SNH

TIME IS SPEEDING UP

2011-08-21T06:19:00.005-04:00

Why not, I asked myself, why not a picture taken way back, a year after the war. We are now in the second half of the eighties and have to remind ourselves we were once young. The picture was taken in 1946, we were engaged even though the U.S. government said to forget it. I stayed in Germany a year fighting the naysayers and finally went home to fight from that end. We won, as did hundreds of other American soldiers. Her dress is made from two kerchiefs and a white parachute, the best we could do under the circumstances. Of course Germany was in terrible condition, her city of Bremen was bombed regularly and her home severely damaged when the British took the city. But that day was party time with both German relatives and my American buddies celebrating our union and end of the war.

ARE YOU EXCITED

2011-08-20T07:43:00.001-04:00

A well written story by Emily Collins about the up-coming Homerama shows up this morning in the SNH. I believe everything she wrote with one exception, how excited everyone is, a million or more expected to view the "Modestly priced" homes. Now, unless there are a few 1000 square footers in the collection there won't be too many immediate sales and the place will eventually look like most other Homerama sites in the area, sparsely settled. Even though fixed mortgage interest rates are low they won't appear to be so when your pink slip arrives with a sad message about how you never should

have taken the plunge in view of the nations malaise. And Obama still has a year to do more damage.

The New Cost of Trash Pickup and How It Is Being Billed Shocks Citizens

2011-08-19T13:30:00.004-04:00

Karyn Cook, Chairperson of the Suffolk chapter of the Hampton Roads TEA Party sent me this yesterday. While many of us heard during the rushed budget debates that Suffolk was going to start charging us $18/month for trash pick up, how many property owners in Suffolk actually realized this?

"Yesterday I came home to find this huge blue "Property of the City of Suffolk" monster of a trash can (for recycling) in my driveway. It followed last week's delivery of a big green "City" monstrosity. I spoke to the City Refuse Manager this AM and told her I didn't order the cans and they are not practical for my use, living so far back off the road. I can dispose of my trash myself. Sure, if I want, but I will still be paying I'm told. OK, insult to injury: I find out what these undesired eyesores will cost me as well as every property owner in Suffolk: $210/year! Make it worse: On your real estate tax bill!! Of course you can imagine what happens when you don't pay your R.E. taxes...I think I've seen a few of those signs around town.. So, I'm guilty! I didn't examine the 2011-2012 Suffolk City budget line by line. I won't make that mistake ever again."

How many of us realized that the trash pickup charge was going to be added to our real estate taxes--allowing Suffolk to put a lean on our homes if we don't pay it? I didn’t. But that would be fair if Suffolk property owners could also put similar leans on the homes of City Council Members and the City Manager when they can't figure out how to live within a budget without jacking it up every year. News Flash: many of your constituents are on fixed incomes! Many don’t get annual raises—or even cost of living increases! A very high percentage of home owners are underwater on their mortgages for homes that are worth far less in 2011 than they were in 2007—even though City appraisals only reflect a fraction of the actual decline in market value! And as if you really didn't know, many more of us are out of work, working reduced hours, or getting paid less now than was the case just a couple of years ago.

And isn't this just one more reason to demand that the Suffolk City Manager put out her next city budget proposal at least 90 days before the Council schedules their first meeting to go over it? This annual game of sliding it out at the last legal minute and pushing Council Members up against a ticking clock to pass bad budgets has to end. No citizen showing up at a Public Meeting on the proposed new budget should ever hear a Council Member asking us to explain to them how to arrive at a balanced budget. After all, the only reason Suffolk has to schedule a Public Meeting on the Budget EVERY year in the first place is because Virginia Law requires that any municipality proposing a new budget that exceeds the current one by MORE THAN 1 PERCENT must do so. If Suffolk could live within it's means, the annual charade wouldn't be necessary! When Council Members have to ask their constituents for the keys to the Clue Locker before they can figure out how to spend less than the revenue coming in, something is very wrong! So give citizens a chance to help our elected officials perform the jobs that they admittedly aren't able to perform! Give us the proposed budget and time to look it over before bringing it up at the first Council working session!

IT'S PATHETIC: OBAMA COMPARES HIMSELF TO MLK Jr.

2011-08-17T18:52:00.001-04:00

“We Forget When He Was Alive There Was Nobody More Vilified, More Controversial”. Wasn’t he a republican? Barrack, you are no MLK Jr.

Obama is delusional, but I too have a dream. Obama being impeached

Obama, the narcissist and chief also has likened himself to Lincoln. There could not be a more stark difference between him and Lincoln:

Lincoln said you can’t bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You can’t strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You can’t help the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
You can’t further the brotherhood of man by encouraging class hatred.
You can’t help the poor by destroying the rich.
You can’t keep out of trouble by spending more than you earn.
You can’t build character and courage by taking away man’s initiative.
And you can’t help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves. *Obama’s leftist ideology essentially violates everyone of these principles handed down in the writings and speeches of a great president he wants to compare himself with.
Guest author AC

SO HE DOESN'T LIKE THE DECISION

2011-08-17T11:54:00.000-04:00

So he doesn't like the decision. But what has Leroy done other than serving on various committees Although surely there have been many or his fans would not be satisfied. But to claim foul on the part of those who had the duty to determine what was fair and equitable was wrong. The city should stick to their guns if what they decided will stand up in a court. Perhaps the Mrs. Borough chief, his a partner should remain quiet on the suggestion that race is a factor. There is little difference between 5-3 and 6-2 votes and if color does matter that much then what about the whites that like the change from status quo. It sure doesn't smell right if this one is changed.

AN ADDITION TO THE POST "NECESSARY CHANGES MADE TO "IS"

2011-08-17T10:58:00.000-04:00

There have been many comments made, some good, some bad and a recent comment asked if there is any record available of statements made in past comments to Posts. The answer is "yes." You can easily use the search engine located on the Home Page of "IS" on the right side of the page. Type in, for example, Mike Duman or Mrs. Martin, wait a minute then go to the top of the Homepage, where you will see comments that were made at the time of the Posts some time ago. Also, to refresh your mind, check the listing of Past Posts. "IS" hopes this will assist your search.

A NECESSARY CHANGE TO INSIDE SUFFOLK

2011-08-13T13:41:00.000-04:00

YOUR COMMENTS DESERVE RULES AND YOUR POINTS MADE WITHOUT RACISM

We encourage an open discussion with a wide range of viewpoints, even extreme ones, but we can do without racism, profanity or slanderous comments toward the author(s) or comment participants. Make your case passionately, but civilly. Stop the name-calling. Logical arguments supported by facts are far more effective, shows respect for your fellow readers, and garners positive judgments from even those who disagree with your position. This site was created to encourage positive and interactive debates to lift public knowledge and, hopefully, support positive changes throughout our community while keeping what is working for us. If your comment does not appear, it is likely because it violates the above policy. We reserve the right to remove comments at our discretion. We encourage you to make your comments under your name or a blog name of your choice. This permits our readers to recognize those who enhance public discussions and remain on the lookout for future comments from those whose comments they have enjoyed reading in the past.

We will do our best to enforce these “rules of comportment.”

WE CAN HARDLY WAIT TO GO BLUE

2011-08-13T07:02:00.002-04:00

My neighbor's driveway is over 1500 feet long, enough to have two steep hills and a surface rough enough to loosen your teeth if you were to push or pull the blue 90 gallon bin to the street even half full of whatever will pass for reuseables. And I must pay over $200 each year for the privilege. I'm only 86 and our driveway only 800 feet and I have not walked that far in ten years. So we have a challenge facing us. But that's not the hard part, remembering what can't go in there. I realize you don't toss half of a soggy left over cupcake in there but it will take pernhap months to avoid mistakes, upsetting the sorters that make final decisions. I haven't yet heard about punitive damages, or any rules regarding limiting particular materials but I assume there are fixed rules. I just know this will be a grand experience. A few tips, that's no parts of a chicken ever goes in Blue can but the paper wrapping it came in may qualify. Steel cans go Blue but only after wasting water for rinsing sticky juices. Only empty beer bottles are recyclable, alcohol goes with paint cans and used oil. We still don't know who gets the profit from sales of the recycled materials...city or recycler. Lots of money there that could be used to reduce citizen cost.

WISE INDIAN SAY BEST TO GET OFF DEAD HORSE

2011-08-12T13:44:00.001-04:00

However, in business and politics we often try other strategies for dealing with dead horses.

1. Buying a stronger whip.
2. Changing riders.
3. Saying things like "This is the way we always have ridden this horse."
4. Appointing a committee to study the horse.
5. Arranging to visit other sites to see how they ride dead horses.
6. Increasing the standards to ride dead horses.
7. Appointing a tiger team to revive the dead horse.
8. Creating a training session to increase our riding ability.
9. Comparing the state of dead horses in today's environment.
10. Pass legislation declaring that, "This horse is not dead."
11. Blaming the horses parents.
12. Harnessing several dead horses together for increased speed.
13. Declaring that "No horse is too dead to beat."
14. Providing additional funding to increase the horse's performance.
15. Do a Cost Analysis to see if contractors can ride it cheaper.
16 Procure a commercial design dead horse.
17. Declare the horse is "better, faster and cheaper" dead.
18. Form a quality circle to find uses for dead horses.
19. Revisit the performance requirements for horses.
20. Say this horse was procured with cost as an independent variable.
21. BRAC the horse farm on which it was born.
22. Promote the dead horse to a supervisory position

How long have you been riding a dead horse?

IS SELENA TIGHTENING UP

2011-08-12T06:32:00.000-04:00

Some charitable and other nonprofit organizations could be denied local tax-exempt status under a proposed policy change that is expected to come to the City Council this fall.
City Manager Selena Cuffee-Glenn plans to ask the council to revisit its policy for exempting such groups from real estate and personal property taxes, Deputy City Manager Patrick Roberts said. The exemptions cost the city more than $1.4 million a year.
"It has become increasingly important for all city organizations to cover their fair share of government service costs to the community, given the economic pressures that have confronted the city in recent years," Cuffee-Glenn wrote council members in a recent letter.

Would this include the SCCA?

RIGHT OUT OF SNH HERE WE GO AGAIN

2011-08-12T05:58:00.001-04:00

"Only three Suffolk schools met federal learning goals during the 2010-2011 school year, ranking the city at the bottom of the pack in Hampton Roads in terms of school achievement. According to reports released on Thursday, 84 percent of Suffolk schools failed to meet federal standards for adequate yearly progress toward the goals of the No Child Left Behind Act. The schools that made AYP were Hillpoint, Northern Shores and Oakland elementary schools. Deputy Superintendent Jacqueline Chavis said school officials are disappointed so many of the schools didn’t meet the federal standards.
“There are some disappointments because we know how hard the schools, the teachers, the students and the parents have worked,” she said. In order for a school to make AYP this year, 86 percent of its students must have shown proficiency on standards of learning tests for reading and 85 percent must have passed the math tests."

Are 15% of our students stupid or uncaring, or is there still something amiss with our teaching methods?

THE ACTUAL NUMBERS FACING US AND THE KIDS

2011-08-11T14:12:00.000-04:00

If this doesn't simplify what these idiots (on both sides of the aisle) in Washington are doing, nothing will!

From the federal Budget Office ...

The U.S. Congress sets a federal budget every year in the trillions of dollars.
Few people know how much money that is so we created a breakdown of federal spending in simple terms. Let's put the 2011 federal budget into perspective:

* U.S. income: $2,170,000,000,000
* Federal budget: $3,820,000,000,000
* New debt: $ 1,650,000,000,000
* National debt: $14,271,000,000,000
* Recent budget cut: $ 38,500,000,000 (about 1 percent of the budget)

It helps to think about these numbers in terms that we can relate to.
Let's remove eight zeros from these numbers and pretend this is the household budget for the fictitious Jones family.

* Total annual income for the Jones family: $21,700 * Amount of money the Jones family spent: $38,200 * Amount of new debt added to the credit card: $16,500 * Outstanding balance on the credit card: $142,710 * Amount cut from the budget: $385

JOE WILSON CALLED OBAMA A LIAR-- HERE IS WHY

2011-08-10T22:33:00.001-04:00

Remember the famous " You Lie" Remark made by Congressman Joe Wilson of South Carolina during Obama State of the Union Address? Obama said Obamacare would not cover illegal criminals? Well guess what?

Page 50/section 152: The bill will provide insurance to all non-U.S. Residents, even if they are here illegally.
** Page 58 and 59: The government will have real-time access to an individual’s bank account and will have the authority to make electronic fund transfers from those accounts.
** Page 65/section 164: The plan will be subsidized (by the government) for all union members, union retirees and for community organizations (such as the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now – ACORN).
** Page 203/line 14-15: The tax imposed under this section will not be treated as a tax. (How could anybody in their right mind come up with that?)
** Page 241 and 253: Doctors will all be paid the same regardless of specialty, and the government will set all doctors’ fees.
** Page 272. Section 1145: Cancer hospital will ration care according to the patient’s age.
** Page 317 and 321: The government will impose a prohibition on hospital expansion; however, communities may petition for an exception.
** Page 425, line 4-12: The government mandates advance-care planning consultations. Those on Social Security will be required to attend an “end-of-life planning” seminar every five years. (Death counseling.)
** Page 429, line 13-25: The government will specify which doctors can write an end-of-life order.

AC, A GUEST POST

AN EXAMPLE OF GENUINE ART

2011-08-10T06:57:00.001-04:00

A very nice photograph of three beautiful young ladies in the SNH obviously singing for enjoyment. That in itself is art, singing is art especially if it were an Italian elderly gentleman singing in his century old stone backery kneading his special bread dough. Contributing to the artful scene would be a partial bottle of red wine close at hand. On the wall behind the pretty girls singing is an askew document from Suffolk High School, hardly an enhancement to the arts.

WATCH THE WOUNDED WARRIORS SKYDIVE SUNDAY

2011-08-09T06:37:00.001-04:00

50 wounded warriors will be fulfilling a lifelong dream in Suffolk this weekend. The boys and girls will be jumping from perfectely sound airplanes because they’ve always wanted to and two local clubs are providing the opportunity. Matt Thompson of TroopSwap.com is organizing the event to begin at 10 am this Sunday at our airport. Suffolk Ruitan and Suffolk Elks will be there selling barbecue. Where needed these will be tandem jumps, many in the safe arms of Mr.Skydive who once safely brought down the original President Bush. The clubs are hoping the general public will come to honor the warriors and experience the barbecue. Although currently confined to a wheelchair I hope to attend being pushed by my Vietnam Veteran son-in-law. I noticed that only Koreans veterans forward will be jumping. Us World War II apparently are too brittle. The goal of the event is to raise $10,000 for charities that support wounded service members and veterans. Businesses and individuals have been asked to provide jumper or event sponsorship.

OBAMA EXPECTS YOU TO BELIEVE THIS

2011-08-08T22:33:00.000-04:00

"The Obama administration and congressional Democrats are betting their political futures on the hope that the American electorate is ignorant and forgetful, and hence the memo has gone out to functionaries hither and yon, from David Axelrod to John Kerry: This is to be called the 'tea-party downgrade.' That this is said with straight faces bespeaks either an unshakable contempt for the mind of the American voter or an as-yet unplumbed capacity for Democratic self-delusion. Let us revisit the facts. The original debt-ceiling deal put forward by the Democrats totaled $0.00 in debt reduction. This would have fallen approximately $4 trillion short of the $4 trillion in debt reduction the credit-rating agencies suggested would constitute a 'credible' step toward maintaining our AAA rating and avoiding a downgrade. ... The Democrats have suggested that Republicans' refusal to accede to tax hikes is the main reason Standard & Poor's felt it necessary to issue a downgrade, the first in American history, last Friday evening. In their assessment of Standard & Poor's reasoning, the Democrats are acutely at odds with Standard & Poor's. The credit-rating agency did not call for tax hikes in its assessment. ... But S&P, along with the other credit-rating agencies, has long taken a position on one aspect of our fiscal troubles: entitlement reform. ... As anybody who has looked at our long-term deficit projections knows, entitlement spending is the major driver of our future deficits. ... Tea-party leaders, far from being a barrier to entitlement reform, have demanded it. ... The deal that finally did pass would have contained significantly more in deficit-reduction, except for the fact that Democrats categorically refused to consider -- is this sounding familiar? -- entitlement reform, the most important issue. ... Democrats believe that they have discovered a cartoon villain in the Tea Party, and they are hoping that American voters are gullible enough to be distracted by the political theatrics. Come November 2012, Americans should keep in mind both the insult and the injury -- to the nation and its credit." --National Review

CLOWARD-PLIVEN DESTRUCTIVE PLAN WORKING

2011-08-07T21:53:00.000-04:00

The Cloward-Piven strategy is the basis for the greatest nation in the history of the world teetering on the brink of a catastrophic economic crisis. America was pushed to this point by a rapidly-expanding national debt and a stressed-out entitlement system; in the center of this crisis is the President, who insists on expanding it even further, all in the name "fairness" and "social justice." As a default date nears and the President threatens seniors that there's a chance they may not receive their Social Security checks, it has been revealed that the federal government disperses a stunning 80 million checks a month, which means that about a third of the US adult population could be receiving some sort of entitlement.
Since the 1960's when Cloward-Piven presented a socialistic guideline to usher in the type of evenhandedness Obama lauds, America's entitlement rolls have swelled from eight million to 80 million. If the nation's ability to disperse handouts were ever disrupted, it's not hard to see how chaos would erupt should an angry army of millions demand what Cloward-Piven called "the right to income."
Couple the threat of dried-up funds for food stamps, Social Security, unemployment benefits and the like with the Obama administration's vigorous campaign to turn a tiny upper class of big earners into the enemy, and you have the Cloward-Piven recipe for anarchy and complete collapse. Is our nation already doomed?

A COMMENT THAT BECAME A POST

2011-08-06T11:54:00.000-04:00

r - Chosen by Asker
There are more whites on welfare than blacks but percentage-wise there are more blacks on welfare than whites. It's also important to note that 24.7% of the black race lives below poverty line while only 8.6% of the white race does (as is stated here http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/se… ).

The countless whites who whimper about blacks on welfare as if it's a black-only program when 1.) there are plenty of whites on welfare and whites have always been welfare recipients in the U.S.; 2.) for the majority of its existence, welfare has been a white-only program. Hate to burst bubbles but welfare was created for solely whites. News flash: blacks were denied all their rights 35 years ago and prior. One of those rights was access to welfare. It was only by the end of a grisly African American Civil Rights Movement did poverty-stricken African Americans finally become eligible for welfare along with whites. Thanks to African Americans fighting for the equal rights of all minorities, all poverty-stricken racial groups became eligible for welfare. [source: http://academic.udayton.edu/race/04needs… ]; 3.) even if welfare were a black-only program, whites would STILL be unjustified to whimper about it. If that were the case, it ought to be regarded as a small reparation for the 5 century long era of anti-black atrocities that ended 35 years ago. It's as a result of that era that so many African Americans are impoverished. The entire African American community had to start out at the bare bottom and work their way up from scratch. In addition, it ought to be regarded as a small measure taken in respect to white privilege. (What are whites even doing on welfare considering white privilege and the fact that they weren't enslaved from the 1500s to 1865, legally discriminated against from 1865 through the 1970s, then separated from society's wealth in white flight)? News flash: today's elderly blacks were treated like garbage and denied all their rights 35 years ago (that includes most jobs; all decent jobs; all decent salaries); consequently leaving today's middle-aged blacks to start out impoverished, much like most of today's younger black generation. Besides that, blacks have been doing the dirty work of whites for the vast majority of their time spent in the U.S., while receiving nothing but racial abuse from whites in return. 3.) middle-class African Americans like myself pay taxes and aren't entitled to welfare even after wrestling our way out of poverty-stricken lifestyles whites have placed us in and we're not whimpering about paying taxes everywhere you turn around like the white community is 4.) despite the fact that middle-class African Americans pay taxes, they receive no credit for paying taxes as the majority of whites whimper about it as if they're the only people who pay taxes and aiding all blacks and only blacks -- Much like affirmative action, welfare is in no way reparation for the black race like whites treat it as. Hell, it's not even treated as reparation by whites, but worse: preferential treatment that solely blacks get over all races. The white race hasn't done squat to make up for the era of anti-black atrocities. The only thing they've done is whimper AS IF they've done far more than enough. In addition to working for the white race with repayment of mistreatment, impoverishment, and zero reparations, blacks additionally have to deal with baseless welfare whimpering from whites.

August 6, 2011 11:20 AM

THE ARTS ARE MORE THAN WE CAN SEE

2011-08-05T04:50:00.000-04:00

A great article appeared in the SNH this morning on the subject of the arts written by Troy Cooper. You will never read a better description of the arts and why it is so important to us and the nation. It is a wider subject than you imagined but the writer nails the essence of the arts in language you will understand, remember, and be better off for having read his piece.

IT TAKES A POLICE FORCE

2011-08-04T13:22:00.000-04:00

"For thousands, Tuesday night was the biggest neighborhood block party of the year. neighbors came out to meet one another, and friends got together in the annual celebration of their shared desire to fight crime in Suffolk."
“It takes a neighborhood. That’s what they said this year as a theme for the annual National Night Out observed by more than than 50 different neighborhoods in Suffolk. I’m fortunate to live where such action is not necessary, trouble free with a populaton of individuals sophisticated enough to want to keep it that way, effortless as it may be. Frankly I believe it is due to the fact that zoning forced us to live on three or more acres. If a crime was committed we might not notice. Not bragging, just thinking of how many quarter acre lots the city has allowed in the past and how many remain unsold. How big is an acre? Put four houses on one and all four owners get to know each others family well, even if they never meet.

FAIRGROUNDS BACK ON

2011-08-04T07:26:00.000-04:00

The Fairgrounds project took another of the fits and starts it is known for, the plan has been on the books it seems forever and appeared to be bogged down again while they pondered where the Health Department would best serve it’s clientel. The city took another little step forward when officials cut the ribbon on part of the housing portion of the project. The project developer and financier joined city officials at the ribbon cutting giving the project new impetus as only two of the planned 36 homes exist. That many people wielding silver shovels ought to be able to knock out a house a week. “Everything you could think of, it was there,” City Councilman Curtis Milteer said Tuesday. “We’re very proud the city is coming to revitalize this area.” Mayor Linda T. Johnson applauded the decade-long effort and said she hoped Tuesday’s event would encourage homebuyers to come looking. Towne Bank appears to be ready to accept full credit. Perhaps they are ready to extend credit to Fairgrounds home buyers.

SECOND WARNING

2011-08-02T16:38:00.000-04:00

Bottom line up front...If you owe personal property taxes in the city of Chesapeake, you might want to pay them no later than 1 Aug.
These actions are from the City treasurer's office. They are also utilized in the cities of Portsmouth, Isle of Wright and Franklin.

Supervisors: Ensure all employees who may have contact with the public concerning the below information are informed:

The City Treasurer has contracted with Virginia Collections Company (VCC) to begin using License Plate Reader (LPR) technology to locate vehicles registered to delinquent tax payers parked or stored throughout the city. The use of a third party agent by the Treasurer is governed by Virginia State Code Section 58.1.

Upon locating and verifying a delinquent tax payer's vehicle, whether on public or private property, the VCC employee will place an immobilization boot and written notice on the vehicle explaining the steps necessary for boot removal and payment of delinquent taxes. For purposes of this activity, placing a boot on a vehicle is synonymous with the vehicle being seized by the City Treasurer.

If the owner of the vehicle has not followed the directions on the written notice by 5 p.m. on the date of seizure, a VCC representative will arrange for the vehicle to be towed to their compound on Yadkin Road in our city.

Again, is Suffolk next? Of course, be patient.

ANOTHER CONVENIENCE GONE

2011-08-01T14:50:00.000-04:00

AirTran Airways, recently acquired by Southwest Airlines, will cease operating from Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport on March 9.
AirTran accounts for close to half the passenger traffic at Newport News, with nonstop service to Atlanta, Boston, Orlando and New York’s LaGuardia.
The economy, high fuel prices and AirTran’s performance in Newport News all contributed to the decision to leave, said Christopher White, AirTran spokesman

IMAGINE A COMPROMISE REACHED IN CONGRESS

2011-08-01T05:46:00.000-04:00

So who won? And did they do the right thing? And which side gave up the most to get this debate settled. Should we care?

PERHAPS A TOO SUDDEN RAID ON HER HOME

2011-08-01T05:35:00.000-04:00

For 22 years, Elizabeth Epps has groomed and boarded my animals. No one loves animals more or works harder than she to save the unloved, throwaways or pets that people have to give up.
Shame on anyone who would set up a contrived situation to create a totally false picture of reality.
Whey Mrs. Epps arrived home from a five-hour hospital stay recently, she found animal control officers dragging the cats she was caring for out of her home using that infamous pole used for vicious dogs.
I am told that these animals all had been people’s pets, that they were all spayed or neutered and that some had been declawed.
I guess that, because they had been so traumatized by the experience, most were classified as feral, and more than half of them were euthanized immediately.
Readers, please support a budding Humane Society shelter. We need someone in Suffolk besides Mrs. Epps to care about animals. And we need people who will not rush to judgment without investigating unfounded allegations against people like her.

This letter to the Editor of the SNH defends Mrs. Epps who has tirelessly helped animals in trouble over many years. We think she should be honored for her efforts so what prompted the sudden raid on her home and the euthanizing of so many of her cared for animals?

THIS IS AN EASY QUESTION TO ANSWER

2011-07-30T10:04:00.000-04:00

There is a list of 80 "public servants" who have multiplied their net worth while serving as Congress Members during the same time period when most of us were losing wealth rapidly; watching our homes plummet in value; reading about corporate malfeasance carried out with impunity; paying much higher income and property taxes; and watching municipal, State, and Federal government share of the pie rise exponentially!    Sickening isn't it? You think any of these clowns were:

1.      "well and faithfully discharge(ing) the duties of the office..." to which elected?
2.      Supporting and defending the Constitution of the United States against all enemies,         foreign and domestic?
3.      Bearing true faith and allegiance to that same Constitution?
4.      Looking out for constituents?

        Or anything else in the oath of office they took upon assuming their Congressional offices in Washington DC to represent us?

Or do you think they are just:

5.      Getting very, very, wealthy at the taxpayer's expense by selling their souls and influence to the highest bidder and/or making a killing in the markets by triggering economic crisis after crisis which--to the people triggering them--create fabulous wealth opportunities that "We the People" will never see?

JUST A NOTE FROM THE FIRST LADY

2011-07-28T16:57:00.001-04:00

Dear American Taxpayer

For only the second time in my adult life, I am not ashamed of my country. I want to thank the hard working American people for paying $242 thousand dollars for my vacation in
Spain.

My daughter Sasha, several long-time family friends, my personal staff and various guests had a wonderful time.

Honestly, you just haven't lived until you have stayed in a
$2,500.00 per night private 3-story villa at a 5-Star luxury
hotel.

Thank you also for the use of Air Force Two and the 70 Secret Service personnel who tagged along to be sure we
were safe and cared for at all times. By the way, if you
happen to be visiting the Costa del Sol, I highly recommend the Buenaventura Plaza restaurant in Marbella; great lobster with rice and oysters! I'm ashamed to admit the lobsters we ate in Martha's Vineyard were not quite as tasty, but what can you do if you're not in Europe, you have to just grin and bear it?

HOW BAD CAN IT GET

2011-07-27T16:38:00.000-04:00

The cat fight up in DC, supposedly to save our nation from utter ruin, may never be over and I can't believe either party is ready to accept cuts in spending to the tune of trillions. A few billion cut is against their nature. A buck here a buck there is how they usually trim an expenditure of mere millions. I just caught a glimpse of my 6 week hospital stay, $184,000. If they actually make cuts in Medicare, say 20%, either the hospital would get less or I would pay more. We undoubtedly face less entitlements or nothing changes. Trouble is, no matter what is decided, any negative will not apply to our honored politicians.

ANOTHER POSSIBLE HIT TO YOUR WALLET

2011-07-25T07:55:00.000-04:00

The flood maps have changed because of better mapping technology and historical data, as well as topography changes because of development, storms and other factors. This sudden move could cost several hundred Suffolk residents several hundred dollars. Bitching won’t change beuracratic action but collective action might and most have never seen highwater or proof it could happen. Annual cost for this maybe could go as high as $16oo. And it could involve the service of surveyor.
“If you suspect that the map is wrong call Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation.

GUEST WRITER AC SAID MORE

2011-07-22T11:27:00.000-04:00

President Obama and senior members of his staff met with eight religious leaders at the White House Wednesday to discuss protecting programs for the poor and vulnerable in deficit reduction and debt ceiling negotiations.I guess that Obama and liberals have no clue as to separation of chuch and state is about, but it makes very little difference when they are in power.Let's get this straight folks.Pastors who work for tax-exempt corporations are invoking the name of Jesus for political causes? Obama uses religion (non muslim) when its good for obtaining votes. He uses his Muslim roots when it benefits him and other Muslims.

By invoking Christian religious beliefs found in the Bible, do you think that Jesus would approve of this? Many of these so called religious foundations and churches.,many of these churches are on the dole themselves.The so called and titled "Reverend" Jeremiah Wright run multi-million-dollar operations taking money from Head Start and other federal programs.
Can anybody provide to me the addresses of the churches that Rev Al and the good Rev Jesse claim to lead. Exacty where are their chuches at?
Churches are supposed to collect alms for the poor — not demand them from taxpayers.

As a liberal, shouldn’t Obama kick them out under the liberal interpretation of separation of church and state?

How come many veteran cemetaries can't use God in their services? How can chapels that are there are closed to famlies who's family member is being buried there and they want to use the chapel for prayer? If a cheerleader can not say a prayer before a football game or a student wants to say a prayer at his or her's graduation, why are these lobbyists allowed to invoke Jesus at the White House?

It's funny Bob, I don’t recall Jesus ever being a stooge for the Roman government.There is NOTHING in the Gospels where Jesus advocates coercively taking money from anyone for any reason.
Come to think of it Invoking Jesus Christ while proclaiming support for the Muslim faith, does this not violate the tenets of Islam??? Obama might be the first US President to have a Fatwa issued against him if he continues dealing from the bottom of the deck like this.

A RIGGED PENCIL LINE ON A MAP DID HIM IN

2011-07-21T20:52:00.004-04:00

Forgive me Leroy. Bennett, it's the first good laugh since I finished 6 weeks in the hospital. I have to laugh when I picture you waking up to the fact that you now live in Mr. Brown's borough. how fast can you move to suitable quarters in your Nansemond Borough? Or can you find a way to circumvent the law, most politicians can. You are now representing but 12,000, you may have lost supporters.. Will your wife be able to control future elections with so many new voters to convince. And how long before those forced to leave you will it take for them to adopt a new Borough chief.

This tsunami of population changes also sweeps aside two School Board members, Hinton and Diane Foster. Do you have any idea how they will remedy this?

HELP, THE DEER ATE EVERYTHING

2011-07-19T17:44:00.002-04:00

Those spring time feed stores tempt us terribly and we wind up lookng foolish after also buying fertilizer, watering hoses, nozzles, and poisons. Before that we raked up the leaves and tilled the soil anticipating wheelborrows of vegetables we could give our smarter neighbors. Weeks later it looks like a practice field for light artillery, the green stuff is gone. We've seen electric fence, plastic fence, tied up dogs, radio with men talkng fence. None work. With so much time, labor and expense invested, we toss it out for the readers of IS. Try being serious, how does
one keep the things away? *-

GONE BUT NOT FOGOTTEN

2011-07-18T07:20:00.001-04:00

Unless it was during my seven week hospital and nursing home experience I can't imagine how I missed the surrender of the Cultural Center Director. It was not unexpected given low attendence at shows they could afford to book. It may have been the economic conditions but those folks that instigated the SCCA seemed to be in support full time. What's next for Suffolk's Palace depends on the attitude of Board members who must decide to shoot lower and find shows that appeal to more folks, or or make it a center for all people. Offer space to organizations that have no place to meet or opereate. And add some folks to the board who have less solphisticated ideas of what constitutes culture. It is a Public facility using everyone's money. Millions over time with little success. Big changes overdue.

FINALLY THEY CAUGHT UP TO "IS"

2011-07-17T14:07:00.004-04:00

Two fine local newspapers finally got the messagee that Andy Damiani is the greatest contributer to what success Suffolk has enjoyed. He has never stopped believing in Suffok's eventual triumph over last place on the list of original nearby jursisdictions. And he backed his ideas with cash on the barrelhead gathering realestate as it became available, always willing to take risk to prevent Suffolk from looking empty, always prodding Council and City Staff for changes in codes or laws he felt impeded progress. He spent hours preparing his RoundTable talk show. To this day, he is 93, he walks Main and Washington looking for opportunities to improve his city. Not bad for a man who came to town with a Washette. Now he owns a good part of the buildings. Mr. Suffolk now needs a cane but that's not a sign he is giving up. And if he did who would grab the reins?

TWO THIRDS OF FAMILY ARRESTED

2011-07-15T09:53:00.002-04:00

Nineteen snakes, some bearded dragons, two pit bulls, feeder mice, and a partridge in a pear tree.
Hey, why don’t you leave the kid, his toys, and his dad alone. They have accepted the risks, they enjoy their pets. My goodness, a 28 year old dad and a 7 year old boy. The food they must buy for the snakes is an economic boom for the purveyor of live mice and rats. The police report did not list the “other animals” so we don’t know what they eat. As for the pit bulls, dad and and son may NOT know the risks but the odds favor them being the victims of those two heads full of teeth. And we can assume there is a mom and moms always know best. The strangest part of these arrests is that the boy’s father is charged with cruelty to children. A mouse did bite the boy. It is interesting to know that Animal Control said that ownnership of the animals is legal.

FROM AN OPINION PIECE SENT TO THE SNH

2011-07-14T07:43:00.000-04:00

Is it the opinion of City Council that there is no need to manage the managers? What incentives do they have to act in an economically sound way, with an eye toward saving money not wasting it? The water quality report could have been done on an 8-by-11 sheet of white paper and posted on the city website, saving the city a lot of money. If 1 percent of our citizens actually read the report and understand it, I will be amazed, so sending this egotistical piece of garbage to folks implies that we have more money than we know what to do with and that when it runs out then we’ll simply grab more from the dumb citizens.

Can council really justify giving these two people a bonus? For what? I believe their job performance should be reviewed immediately and the results published on the city website for we, their real employers, to be able to measure council’s ability to manage our city. I also would like to know why we need both a mayor and a city manager. That is another example of a redundancy that we can ill afford in this city. If we cannot do a better job of managing our money and having capable managers, then when it is time to evaluate the job performance of City Council, its members should not be surprised by the outcome of that job review. The citizens of Suffolk have reached the end of their rope.
William Millan
Suffolk

COMING TO SUFFOLK ???

2011-07-13T06:37:00.002-04:00

If you are over-due with taxes they are looking for you via two ordinary cars with special scanners that can read city your license plate and compare it with their list of “deadbeats.” If a red flag pops up you can expect a heavy boot on your wheels AND A DEMAND for taxes due plus 20 percent. You will also pay a fee for the boot. This new tax will be for those living in any of the nearby jurisdictions. If you live any in any of them you will pay but they find it parked in Suffolk, you will pay. Will this strong method of collecting come to Suffolk? “It’s just a very efficient way to collect delinquent taxes,” Suffolk city treasurer said. “They’re having great success with it.” Vehicles whose owners don’t pay up by the end of the day get towed, and the owner gets slapped with towing and storage fees, as well. If they never produce the money, their vehicle gets sold at auction.

RETRACTION

2011-07-12T13:19:00.000-04:00

Bob,

I've attached a PDF of our May 26, 2011, Opinion page. I believe it includes the letter you say in the post below that we "refused to publish."

I must say that I'm disappointed, both in Andy and in Inside Suffolk. I had addressed this issue with Andy already; he had brought the letter along with some other info that he'd already written a separate letter about (and which we'd run). I saw what we'd already published, did not see the new letter in the packet and then put everything aside, knowing that I'd see him again to talk to him about the issue. Indeed, he visited my office a few weeks later (assumedly after showing the letter to you) and asked why I'd chosen not to publish his letter. When I explained the situation to him, he showed me the NEW letter hidden amongst the old information, and I published it the following day.

I'm disappointed in Andy for telling others that I'd "refused" to publish his letter before finding out from me what was happening.

I'm disappointed in Inside Suffolk for not giving me a chance to respond to a two-month-old allegation, and one that turned out not to be true. You have indicated to me that you want Inside Suffolk to be taken seriously by the Suffolk News-Herald, by the city of Suffolk and by others. This is not the way to accomplish that goal. A serious and responsible journalist would at least have made the call to confirm what he'd heard from Andy.

Considering the loaded word, "refused," which you used in your post, I believe a retraction, if not an apology, is in order.

Res

ANDY WAS RIGHT AGAIN.

2011-07-10T13:51:00.001-04:00

Two months ago Mr. Suffolk, Andy Damaini showed me a letter written by him to the public but the SNH refused to print it for some mysterious reason. many years ago Andy had tried to get Council to buy an idea that would have resulted in a fat pile of money accumulated in the city treasury. Andy knew way back then that garbage pickup would not be free forever. He wanted to charge each citizen a resonable amount then to take the pain out of what was to come. Exactly what an awakened city hall is doing now by charging us $17 a month. If they had listened to Andy then, INSTEAD of huffing and puffing now over what they consider a brilliant stroke of genius, we may already have had the money. Unless, of course they had not spent it on something as silly as a million for the tourist bureau housing. Andy's turned down letter was merely an embarrassing jab in the City's ribs. Andy may need a cane to walk, but not to think.

HONEY, I' M HOME

2011-07-09T14:10:00.002-04:00

Between the powers that be, the surgeons at Norfolk General, and my struggling to survive in a beat up body of 86 we fought a battle for life and won. I was never fond of hospitals but Sentara Norfolk General did pleasantly keep me going for six weeks. And at my strongest I could not think straight enough to find InsideSuffolk.com to explain my absence. I will write the whole story and post it in “Bob’s Corner.” That will take a few days. It is an interesting account of how an early life injury can result in a person’s death 79 years later. But for now it is physical therapy and back to Posting subjects that will, hopefully, earn your comments. Bless you for your patience.

Today's Hour of Power

2011-07-08T11:49:00.000-04:00

High Flight

by John Gillespie Magee, Jr.

Oh, I have slipped thesurly bonds of earth,
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds...and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of...wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up, the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, nor even eagle flew.
And while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space...
...put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

May God bless all the members of our space program!

STS 135 - Shuttle Atlantis

Nongovernmental International Conference on Climate Change

2011-07-04T01:27:00.003-04:00

My son and I just returned from the Heartland Institute's 6th International Conference on Climate Change in DC. Very enlightening! Approximately 350 of the world's top climate scientists, oceanographers, atmospheric physicists, geologists, numerical modelers, --the whole gamut of folks with the qualifications and experience to recognize this entire Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) scam for what it is! It's instructive that so many of the PhD's were in emeritus status but these are the only scientists not subject to political and economic retaliation for violating the tenants of this environmental religion--because little of what the Climatists are involved in today can seriously be considered science!

Nobody present denies that there is periodic global warming--and that this is related to natural cycles that have always been at play, still are, and always will be. The divisive issue is what portion of it, if any, is caused by man? And if the zealots weren't so disparate to leap from their implausible hypothesis to the court of public opinion via an equally ignorant media, we'd have had real answers well over a decade ago. But the environmental zealots chose to skip the testing, sharing their models (along with the associated assumptions, sensitivity analyses, and data bases) with others to permit them to run the same experiments and perhaps replicate their efforts, and to declare victory and impose top down solutions! So much cleaner than following the Scientific Method we all learned in grade school which somehow no longer matters in this post-scientific world of academic and political elites!! But if the zealots are so fearful that their science won't stand up to scrutiny that they can't risk premature exposure, this already speaks volumes.

And as more facts have been uncovered, we learned that their science is on shakier ground every day. Examples: we've known since slightly after Climategate that the CRU Temperature database was "lost". So why haven't all UN IPCC results and recommendations derived from them been rejected as unverifiable? The same applies to the 1991 PhD thesis Temperature database upon which the entire New Zealand conclusions of AGW are based. Scientists are taking NZ politicians to court to have those recommendations thrown out for the same reasons. Based on what? The basis no longer exists--and the AGW scientists are the ones that some how "misplaced" the data when all the FOIA requests started flooding in, the same scenario as in East Anglia's CRU. And since the data from the majority of US temperature stations have been so compromised by heat island impacts of encroaching development, virtually nothing can be used without applying "corrections" over which nobody seems to have any control.

So how can so many elected officials smugly tell us that they support placing massive penalties on productive capacity, smothering industry in regulations and red tape, adding billions of additional taxes on gas, and crippling our economy? But the same fools throw over a hundred billion a year in research to prove AGW (but not to study it!) and on alternative energy sources that aren't ready for the market and will continue to require huge and growing subsidies for as far as the eye can see without showing any signs of being ready to compete with fossil fuels that we can produce safely and at a fraction of the cost now?

Most at the ICCC6 accept that there could be some small percentage of the overall warming that might be related to human activities but until governments stop pursuing a desired result and start pursuing the real truth, we're not going to learn how much. But since CO2 is their main driver, and is a mere trace gas in the atmosphere accounting for only 0.039% of it--97% of which is produced naturally (volcanoes, oceans, decaying biomass), man-caused global warming will undoubtedly be small enough not to justify the commitment of trillions in funds and altering entire industries and economies. But that IS the goal of the AGW zealots made up mostly of academics, government bureaucrats, and fellow leftists riding Mann-made global warming to bigger government, more regulation, destroying industries and capitalism, and casting a pox on the third world by the way! They fear that the developing economies in India, Africa, and the middle-east simply can't be permitted to acquire running water or electricity least we all be damned! How humane and generous to feel that their theory is so important that they are willing to bet the fate of billions of fellow human beings on this planet on it! To far too many of these fools, the worst cancer on the face of the planet is man! Simply pathetic!

Guestwriter A. C. SORTS IT ALL OUT, GOOD AND BAD

2011-06-21T10:29:00.003-04:00

As I told you the other day that trip to the DHS workshop in NY really got to me. Not the conference itself but the people who attended it and some who ran it. If you are a conservative or an independent your questioning of procedures or asking questions in regards to qualifications are not wanted by those who are in charge. It was a haven of nothing but liberal ivy league elites. I have said this before but I am really starting to have more sympthay and empathy for those at Ruby Ridge and Wounded Knee and yes even Waco.

I read as much as I can. I watch Fox. I watch the alphabet networks, I'll even watch those other liberal hacks, Shultz, Madcow and Sommers. I take notes sometimes and research what they spew including the egoes of O'Reilly and Hannity. The only pundit that I make sure to listen to is Greta. If I need an education Beck is the guy but he can bore me at times.

Someone told me at the conference I was stupid. I said,"Fine," blessed him for his comment and his opinion. However I told him I was very good at being stupid. When he walked away mumbling and turning back to say something I saluted. Being stupid often puts me on their level.

FREE AT LAST

2011-06-17T10:11:00.001-04:00

Had my last hospital bath this morning and with several doctor's blessing I will be headed home by noon. Sentara is the best and I owe them my life. Them and Dr. Maples, emergency room doctor at Obici who saw my condition as critcal and suggested immediate surgery.

THE EAGLE HAS LANDED

2011-06-08T18:38:00.000-04:00

After a few days of indecision I became well enough whereby a surgical procedure could be performed. Before I was admitted to the hospital I had waited too long and gone beyond the point of safety. The procedure was delicate and stemmed from an early life accident which took decades develop to a point where it was now or never. No need here to print the long list of medical personnel involved who put their great talents together to select the right path. No need to detail here the direction they took but most agree it saved my life. The net result was the loss of a portion of my foot I had neglected. Thanks to them, I have a shot at a few more years, a new life beginning at age 86, and as kids say today that is for me "awesome" news.

Thanks for sticking with the website. As soon as doctors say so I'll be back working for you.

American Idols All

2011-05-30T18:20:00.000-04:00

Memorial Day Tribute

2011-05-29T08:51:00.000-04:00

In memory of all those who helped make our country great. We carry your sacrifice in our hearts.

http://www.military.com/memorial-day/slideshow/

Update and Continued Prayers for Bob

2011-05-26T22:40:00.002-04:00

A message from Bob's daughter, Wendy:

Robert Pocklington was emergently transferred from Obici to SNGH on 23 May and is having surgery in an attempt to restore the circulation to his foot. He has been suffering with intermittent excruciating pain for many months, and somehow all his physicians missed the fact that blood flow was severely compromised. Please send your prayers and positive energy his way.

Thank you; daughter Wendy.

UPDATE: BOB'S SURGERY IS SCHEDULED FOR TUESDAY, MAY 31, 2011. PRAYERS ALL AROUND.

UPDATE: June 1, 2011
Bob's artery graft surgery was successful and his recovery is being monitored. Keep the prayers coming!

THE PRESIDENT IS A GREAT GUY

2011-05-19T23:08:00.000-04:00

Let's be clear" on this as POTUS always reads to us from his teleprompter: OBAMA did NOT kill Bin Laden. An American sailor, who Obama just a few weeks ago was debating on whether or not to PAY, did. In fact, if you remember a little less than two years ago, his administration actually charged and attempted to court marshall 3 Navy Seals from Seal Team when a terrorist suspect they captured, complained they had punched him during the take down and bloodied his nose. His administration further commented how brutal they were. The left were calling them Nazi's and Baby Killers. Now all of a sudden the very brave men they vilified, are now heros when they make his administration look good in the eyes of the public. Obama just happened to be the one in office when the CIA finally found the b...... and our sailors took him out. Essentially, Obama only gave an answer. Yes or No, to him being taken out. It NOT an Obama victory, but an AMERICAN victory!! Forward on IF YOU AGREE " Ed Schriber Col. USMC (Ret.) "Semper Fi". An when will someone be prosecuted for releasing all the Top Secret details to the Media? Whatever happened to using actionable intelligence before releasing it to the public? Or is the real mission propping up POTUS' political image regardless of degrading operational capabilities, compromising opportunities to take down more terrorist networks, or risking servicemen and women's lives?

Our Guest Author Sums It Up:

2011-05-19T13:33:00.000-04:00

Statists believe government is the answer to all of our ills. However, authority goes hand in hand with responsibility. If President Obama and his ilk want to run everything, is it too much to expect them to run it well? C'mon Mr. President. You wanted to be Emperor of the US if not the world. Let's see the quality, low cost health care, millions of new jobs, and reliable, environmentally "good" green energy you promised. I ask, how can you have one policy for Egypt and another for Libya? What is our policy in Syria or Yemen? The Saudi Government is angry at Obama for calling for regime change because they fear they are next. Obama's Middle East strategy is to have no coherent strategy at all. Why? Could it be something about Obama's Muslim roots? Of course. He can’t afford to set off the entire Muslim world, but again they don't need Obama to do that. They all seem to have a problem with him now by the way HE managed the OBL situation.Before that they didn't care because of their knowing he is weak and uncertain. Both he and Hillary are two Progressives in a pod. It may take years to repair the harm that they have done to our foreign policy and relationships with our allies including Israel.

Obama is tremendously vulnerable on all the issues that he chooses to face and those he chooses to dither on he says "present" in closed circles and by doing so, he is actually ignoring his cabinet members and then has council with his czars who I think actually run the country. Republicans by and large seem to be afraid of that third rail the Democrats have constructed around Obama--racism. His presidency is just a continuation of his whole life aided and abetted by Affirmative Action and a shadowy group of Progressives,. George Soros, and his czars who want to turn this country into a socialist state like France. Unfortunately, the MSM has lost its mind and thinks their support of this incompetent executive is the highest priority. It's like a family that gives a backward child a pass at every act that he fails to succeed at. His programs such as the oil exploration embargo and the wild spending are so wrong and stupid that an eight-year-old kid could point it out. But whoa, Nellie, that's how the media is treating this middle-aged man! I was brought up to believe if you can't hack it you should be summarily dismissed. The SEAL team that terminated Osama bin Laden are the exact opposite of the Obama Administration--highly trained, patriotic, and completely dedicated to protecting America while the Obama Team in Washington D.C. is only when it becomes politically motivated as to garner votes to help off set other failed policies. This is a defensive moment. This gives the appearance of one trying to save his presidency. That is exactly what Obama is doing.

Of course some will call me racist, nothing new there at all, but in my opinion Obama is America's first Affirmative Action President. He won the presidency for no other reason than skin pigmentation. Americans have been fed the Political Correctness and Afirmative Action pabulum for so many years that it is nearly impossible for many to think any other way. The Dems realized that very fact and capitalized on it in the last election.If the repugs and those independents who are willing to take a stand and challenge the liberal mentality and those who suffer from "white guilt syndrome," I hold very little hope that 2012 will herald anything but four more years of the same lunacy.

BENNETTS CREEK PARK A SUCCESS FOR CANCER RELAY

2011-05-17T11:19:00.000-04:00

The Cancer Relay team made a bold move and shifted operations to Bennetts Creek Park where there is more room for everything except parking. That can be remedied. Of course there was the usual uprooting dismay because the N S Academy was ideal for traffic control and parking. Many wondered why the Relay gave up the great indoor facilities. The cause of what few problems they had at the park was exactly what they wanted; an abundance of people and the right amount of potties.

They have reached $191,000 , about $10,000 shy of the goal. Outstanding sponsorship money and post-event fund raisers are sure to bring in the remainder. The money will stay in the community. The Cancer Relay of` 2011 was outstanding and aided by City employees.

TESTING A MAN'S PATIENCE

2011-05-14T18:37:00.000-04:00

You come home one evening and there is a young man in the home apparently bent on stealing or vandalizing or just needed a glass of water. You produce a gun and intimidate him until higher authority arrives. Your home had been visited other times and this may be the person. What goes through your mind; does your trigger finger itch a little? Walter Sorensen controlled his emotions. Army combat-training told us in that situation pull the trigger. He didn’t and his “enemy” was spared, given time to think and change. Too often lead flies and the scene is irreversible. Let’s hope Sorensen’s decision, the Juvenile Court System, and the boy’s family can rearrange the boy’s attitude.

NEW EDA MEMBER STARTS FACING SHORTAGES

2011-05-14T11:16:00.002-04:00

Fritz Skeeter, an electrical engineer at Newport News Shipbuilding, replaces former representative Johnnie Edwards, who died in March 2010. Not a great way to start but a challenge…he wanted the job.
EDA picks up income from Hilton Garden leases, and rental of our Conference Rooms. EDA pays expenses and receives income from our new Health and Human Services on East Washington. EDA also pays its own administration costs and bills for landscaping our many recreational and Industrial Parks.
Unfortunately the budget for expenses at the Health and Human Services Building has gone up nearly $150,000 since last year. The expenses on the bond interest have risen more than $100,000. Lawn service and janitorial services, both currently out for bid, are projected to rise. The electric bill will go up if Dominion Virginia Power gets a rate increase approved. The water and sewer rates are going up, which means the authority is stuck with that..
Suddenly a budget of 2.2 million. EDA is a city unto itself, a deliberate spin off. Is it suddenly out of control. Good Luck Fritz Skeeter’

PERFECT ANSWER

2011-05-12T11:21:00.000-04:00

An annual contest is held each year at Texas A&M University calling for the most appropriate definition of a contemporary term.

This year's term was: "Political Correctness."

The winner - with a great definition, was student who wrote:

"Political correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media,which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a piece of dog poop by the clean end."

SOL TEST TIME

2011-05-12T10:54:00.000-04:00

Visiting with a young 2nd year college student who takes SOL tests next week at a large college in
Virginia. Said he had to get back to school in order to be prepared. Keep in mind this was an all "A" student in high school. I learned this: If he passes the SOLs he won't have to take the final exams. Buts if he fails the SOLs he must take the final exams.

Am I missing something here? Are SOLs anywhere near as difficult as final exams? If a student fails the SOL what are his chances to pass the exam? Were SOLs designed to make life for kids a bit easier? Help

DOES SUFFOLK KNOW WHAT IT IS DOING IN REGARD TO

2011-05-09T07:37:00.001-04:00

BORROWING 71 MILLION

It appears that this time they do because the bulk of the new borrowing, about $60 million, will go to the utility fund to cover construction of new and upgraded water and sewer facilities, Seward said. Many of those improvements were mandated by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality; others are needed to meet the increased demand of the city's growing population.

We can't argue with that and the profit from the new trash pickup plan may assist payments. The rest is for the city hall, our city employees new home away from home. We expect Brown and Bennett to sooner or later scream loudly for the Phoenix Bank restoration. Perhaps they have gone soft. The girls in the old courthouse are happy with their pamphlet racks and free coffee, and are not a tall bothered by tourists. So sort of a peace exists in Suffolk unless you have something on your mind.

WE'RE GONNA DIE ?

2011-05-08T07:49:00.000-04:00

There is a plan to seek volunteers on a day in May to rid the city of litter. Better we equip them with Ozone filters because the American Lung Association gave Suffolk an “F” in ozone air pollution. Like our city tax and spend department our air is not making the grade. But what does this group of words in this their 12^th report tell us? “Suffolk was the only city in Hampton Roads where the organization gathered enough data in order to grade it.” They go on with a detailed explanation of how the air is tested but should we jump into action before we know how surrounding cities rate? And if we start pulling ozone out of our air envelope what’s to prevent it leaking in from bordering cities? We see no need to panic. The stink from local pig farms is no more and Franklin shut down the paper mill but apparently those items have no connection with ozone. Williams recommends anyone concerned about air conditions should contact their state legislators and tell them about their concerns. I wish I knew what our concerns are. Do you?