Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Michigan Prez Concedes an “OOPS!” on RichRod Hire

A 15-22 overall record, an embarrassing 6-18 mark in Big Ten play, the first major violations in the football program’s history and disgruntled fans and alumni alike were the wreckage left in the wake of the Rich Rodriguez era at Michigan.

Even to those wearing the deepest hue of maize-and-blue-colored glasses, the RichRod experiment was an abject failure that could’ve set the program back several years.

At a Rotary Club function in Flint, Michigan, Friday, May 11, 2012, UM president Mary Sue Coleman allowed as much, with mlive.com writing that “Coleman admitted… that the university made the wrong choice bringing in Rich Rodriguez as head football coach.”

As noted by AnnArbor.com, it was the first time Coleman, who along with then-athletic director Bill Martin hired Rodriguez to take over for Lloyd Carr in 2008, had publicly made such an admission.

The criticism of Carr and his conservative offensive approach, Coleman said, led the university to do a 180-degree philosophical turn from the previous regime.

“We though, OK, well let’s go hire the guy who invented the spread offense,” Coleman, presumably facetiously, told the crowd before rhyming her way to the conclusion that “[h]e was a hot, young coach with a different approach.”

Despite his West Virginia roots, RichRod was never “the Michigan man” most had come to expect as head of the storied program.  RichRod’s successor, Brady Hoke, on the other hand?  He eats, sleeps and breathes that moniker.

“He has more of the kind of Midwestern ethos,” Coleman said of Hoke.

And he has more of that winning ethos to which Michigan has become accustomed, producing in his first year with the Wolverines the program’s first 11-win season since 2006.

Rodriguez, meanwhile, has landed on his coaching feet, with Coleman saying she is “very happy” for Rodriguez and his new gig at Arizona.  We’re quite certain that many a Michigan fan would concur, that they are very happy RichRod’s in Arizona as well.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Time Cover Masks Problem: Too Few Kids Breast-Fed

The real issue with breast-feeding is this: Too few infants who could really benefit from it are getting mom’s milk.

Sure, Time magazine’s cover photo of a woman breast-feeding her 3-year-old is generating debate about how old is too old. But examples like that are pretty rare.

About 44% of U.S. moms do at least some breast-feeding for six months. But only 15% follow advice from the American Academy of Pediatrics that babies receive breast milk alone for that time span. And fewer still stick with breast-feeding for a year, also recommended by the academy.

About three-quarters of mothers say they breast-feed during their baby’s first days and weeks of life. Then it drops off fast.

By their first birthday, fewer than a quarter of children are getting breast milk, according to the government’s latest national report card on breast-feeding.

That’s a public health issue, because breast-feeding brings so many benefits to babies.

By 2020, the nation’s health goals call for more than a quarter of babies to be exclusively breast-fed through their first six months of life, and for more than a third to still be nursing when they turn 1 year old.

To help reach those goals, the surgeon general last year issued a call to ease the obstacles that make it harder for women to breast-feed - from the hassles of pumping milk at work to a general lack of understanding about how super-healthy it is during that critical first year.

“We have a lot more work to do,“ says Academy of Pediatrics’ spokeswoman Dr. Tanya Altmann, a pediatrician near Los Angeles. “It would be much more beneficial to focus on breast-feeding infants and young toddlers,“ she said, than on the rare older examples like Time found for its cover.

Not every mother can or chooses to breast-feed. And the surgeon general’s report said they shouldn’t be made to feel guilty.

But the academy’s latest update, published in March in the journal Pediatrics, lists the benefits of breast-feeding for at least several months and up to a year: Breast-fed infants have a lower risk of sudden infant death syndrome. They suffer fewer illnesses such as diarrhea, earaches and pneumonia, because breast milk contains antibodies that help fend off infections until their own immune systems become robust. They’re also less likely to develop asthma, or even to become fat later in childhood.

Moms can benefit, too, decreasing their risk of developing breast or ovarian cancer.

How old is too old for the child? The pediatricians’ guidelines say breast-feeding should continue along with solid foods to age 1 - “or as long as mutually desired by mother and infant.“

The World Health Organization recommends continuing “along with appropriate complementary foods up to 2 years of age or beyond.“

Toddlers sometimes make clear that they prefer a cup, but Altmann says if both mom and child are comfortable, there’s no harm in going longer than average.

Still, the clear nutritional benefit wanes as youngsters start getting most of their nutrition from solid food, and Altmann says parents need to teach their tots to soothe themselves.

“At some point it’s less about nutrition and more about comfort,“ says Altmann, who breast-fed her own two sons until they were 1.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Sutton: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers hosts ‘Rake the Lake’ event – 05.12.12

The Third Annual “Rake the Lake” Spring Cleanup at Sutton Lake in Sutton will be held from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM on Saturday, May 12, 2012.

“Rake the Lake” is open to everyone, and past events have included families, groups of Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and friends who help make Sutton Lake a little bit brighter.

Sutton Lake staff can suggest an area in particular need of attention and will provide trash bags, gloves, buckets for sharp objects and collection service around the lake.

The event is hosted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Sutton Lake, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, Sutton Lake Marina and the Braxton Citizen’s News.

At the conclusion of the day, numerous local businesses sponsor a cookout at Sutton Lake Marina to thank those who participate.

The first 200 registered participants also receive a t-shirt.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

Free Books Available at GSC RFK Library

A large amount of books have been donated to the Glenville State College Robert F. Kidd Library to be given away free to the public.

“These books will be great for anyone’s collection. This donation was perfect timing for summer reading,“ said GSC Major Gifts Officer and GSC West Virginia Veterans Legacy Project Director Dr. Bob Henry Baber. He secured the donation from Visions, Vessels, and Victory Incorporated, a Glenville Christian-based nonprofit.

The books that were donated include:

Retribution: The Battle for Japan 1944-1945 by Max Hastings,

Relentless (a novel) by Dean Koontz, Andy Rooney: 60 Years of Wisdom and Wit by Andrew A. Rooney

Mathilda Savitch (a novel) by Victor Lodato

Retribution: The Battle for Japan 1944-1945 follows the last year of the Pacific War. In addition to being available to the public, copies of the book will also be given away by the GSC West Virginia Veterans Legacy Project during Veterans Week in the Fall. “We are thrilled to be able to give this book to veterans and their families. This is a great read for any war history buff, all are also invited to stop in the library and get a copy while supplies last,“ said GSC Library Associate Jason Gum, the overseer of the archives at GSC.

For more information about the donation of books or getting free copies of the titles, contact Baber at “Bob.Baber@glenville.edu” or 304.462.6382 or Gum at “Jason.Gum@glenville.edu” or 304.462.6163.

Friday, April 27, 2012

Nearly 1,600 Gas Wells Finished in West Virginia since 2006

A survey shows natural gas drillers have completed nearly 1,600 wells in West Virginia since 2006.

The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register reports an additional 1,273 wells are still being developed where companies are rushing to tap vast deposits of the Marcellus shale field.

The study by the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey, an arm of the state Department of Commerce, found that Wetzel County has 62 completed Marcellus wells, followed by 46 in Tyler County.

Large numbers of wells also exist in the southern coalfields, including in Logan, Lincoln, Boone, Mingo and Wyoming counties.

But West Virginia Oil and Natural Gas Association Executive Director Corky DeMarco says current low natural gas prices may cause drillers to curtail operations or shift their attention from dry to wet gas regions.

Thursday, April 26, 2012

OddlyEnough™: Largest WV Newspaper Declines to Endorse Manchin

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin is heading into the May 08 primary without the support of West Virginia’s largest newspaper.

Manchin finds himself losing some high-profile supporters on both sides of the ideological divide.

The Charleston Gazette endorsed the Democrat during the 2010 special primary and general elections. But a Wednesday editorial leaves it up to readers whether to vote for him this time.

The editorial says Manchin does not support some of his party’s core values, making him at times a Democrat in name only.

The newspaper also notes that Manchin will not say whether he will back President Barack Obama, the top of his party’s ticket.

It also cites his vote with Republicans on a birth control issue.

But Manchin’s votes on reproductive health have also cost him the longtime support of West Virginians for Life.

But the editorial says that the former governor has no worthy opponent from either party and will probably win re-election.

Former state legislator Sheirl Fletcher is Manchin’s primary challenger.

Republican John Raese is seeking a rematch in November.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Ritchie County Genealogy & History Fair – Saturday, 04.28.12

The first ever Ritchie County Genealogy & History Fair will be held Saturday, April 28, 2012, 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, at the Ritchie County High/Middle School Commons Area.

Vendors will be selling genealogy and history books, maps and other items.

Admission is free and a concession stand will be available.

Vendors slated to participate include:

•  Calhoun County Historical & Genealogical Society

•  Doddridge County Historical Society

•  Gilmer County Historical Society

•  Hackers Creek Pioneer Descendants (Lewis County)

•  Harrison County Genealogical Society

•  Marion County Historical Society

•  Ritchie County Historical Society

•  Roane County Historical Society

•  Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike Alliance

•  Upshur County Historical Society

•  Genealogy by David Boggs

•  Genealogy by Lockhart

•  Mountain Heritage Books

For further information, email: “info@ritchiehistoricalsociety.com” or call 304.643.2738 or toll free 866.363.8416.

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

West Virginia Juvenile Justice System to Be Examined

West Virginia’s juvenile justice system will be examined by a court-hired monitor due to concerns that it focuses more on punishment than rehabilitation.

“Currently there seems to be too little emphasis on individual programming and re-entry strategies,“ state Supreme Court administrative director Steve Canterbury said Monday in a news release.

The court has tapped Cindy Largent-Hill, a former director of the Division of Juvenile Services, for the job. Largent-Hill is a member of the Adjudicated Juvenile Rehabilitation Review Commission, which is looking at the division’s programs and operations plan for the Industrial Home for Youth in Salem and the Honey Rubenstein Center in Davis.

“This is a monitor, not a special master and not a receiver,“ Justice Margaret Workman said in the release. “It would be premature without full information and study to appoint a special master or receiver. We want to work cooperatively with the other branches of government.“

Largent-Hill will work with circuit courts and their probation staffs, visit facilities, review files of juveniles at the Salem and Davis facilities and talk with residents.

She told the Charleston Daily Mail that she wants to help change the system, and not just police it.

Most youths entering the system were abuse victims or have drug problems. But treatment opportunities sometimes are overshadowed by a focus on punishment, she said.

“They are stunted in so many ways — socially, emotionally, behaviorally — so they are much more complex, so it’s not just a teenager with a bad attitude anymore,“ she said.

The system offers vocational and educational classes and is less like prison that it was several years ago. But it could do a better job, said Denny Dodson, the current Juvenile Services director.

Dodson said some juveniles don’t want to take advantage of educational or vocational programs. Some judges also are part of the problem.

“The good judges use that rehabilitation, but some courts use it as a punishment, and it’s out of exasperation, realizing the change wasn’t going to happen,“ he told the newspaper.

Monday, April 23, 2012

GSC Trillium Reading Announced - 04.24.12

The 9th annual Glenville State College Trillium Reading is scheduled for Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 4:00 PM in the Mollohan Campus Community Center Room 315.

The Trillium is a literary and arts journal that contains artwork, poetry, and prose created by GSC students, faculty, staff, and community members.

“This is a great opportunity for the authors and artists featured in the Trillium to bring their works to life in front of an audience. I was thrilled with the amount of submissions we received this year and the quality of the work. I invite all to attend this event,“ said GSC Trillium Editor Rose Johnson.

Free copies of the 2012 Trillium will be available at the reading as well as in the Mollohan Campus Community Center, the Robert F. Kidd Library, the GSC Department of English in the Heflin Administration Building, and other locations on the campus.

For more information about the Trillium reading, contact the faculty advisor Dr. Jonathan Minton at “jonathan.minton@glenville.edu” or 304.462.6322.

Saturday, April 21, 2012

G-Comm™: WHAT MUST BE SAID

~~  Günter Grass ~~

The English translation was published by the Guardian.

You can read the poem in the original German H E R E.

Friday, April 20, 2012

Complaint: Calhoun Attorney Engaging in ‘Legal Tomfoolery’

The WV Record Reports:

A New York woman is accusing a Calhoun County attorney of “legal tomfoolery” in representing her interests in an estate dispute in neighboring Gilmer County.

Marlea Cottrill on April 9 filed an ethics complaint against F. John Oshoway with the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, the arm of the state Supreme Court that investigates attorney misconduct.

In her complaint, Cottrill, 51, of Jump, N.Y., a suburb of Syracuse, hired Oshoway, 60, a sole practitioner in Grantsville, to defend her in a lawsuit involving the estate of her late father, Willard, only to have him do next to nothing.

According to her complaint, Willard Cottrill passed away in October 2010 “under extreme and unusual circumstances.“ In June, Cottrill was named as a co-defendant in a suit to quiet title filed by the estate’s executor, Michael W. Murphy, her brother-in-law in Gilmer Circuit Court.

The suit seeks to divest any interest on Willard’s property in Linn claimed by Ruth Mitchell, the other co-defendant. According to the suit, Willard in his will dated Nov. 1, 2006, requested Mitchell, “be provided a residence on his real property,“ but “‘shall not preclude divestiture of the property by heirs, and is not intended to establish a life tenancy.‘“

It was not until two months later, Cottrill says, that she found out about it, and only through Mitchell. In a panic, she says she drove nine hours to Gilmer County to find an attorney to answer the complaint or risk losing all her rights to inheritance.

Eventually, she found Oshoway who agreed to accept her case for $2,000. Initially, Cottrill paid him $500, and sent him a check for the balance after returning to New York.

Between then and last month, Cottrill says Oshoway has failed to communicate with her about not only the status of the case, but its implications. Also, he has failed to provide her copies of any court documents filed since then including her answer.

All documents she’s received have either been provided by Mitchell or her attorney, Dan Grindo. A copy of the answer Oshoway filed for Cottrill, that Grindo’s office sent her via fax on Sept. 2, 2011, does not bear the time-stamp of the circuit clerk’s office.

Because she was not properly served with a summons, and copy of the complaint, Cottrill says Oshoway should’ve moved to have her dismissed from the suit. However, he failed to do that.

Eventually, Cottrill says she received a telephone call from Oshoway early last month. In it, she says he expressed bewilderment she hadn’t received any documents from him, but would ensure she receive a copy of all pleadings made since she hired him.

However, when she did not receive anything after two weeks, Cottrill wrote him a letter asking him to withdraw from the case. In her letter, she also asked he provide an accounting of his work, and a refund of her retainer.

Shortly thereafter, Oshoway responded saying he would be filing a motion to withdraw as her attorney. However, he disputed receiving an additional $1,500 from her after the initial $500. Instead, he said the check she sent was for $1,000.

In her complaint, Cottrill says that “is absolutely untrue” and provided a copy of the cancelled check Oshoway cashed for $1,500. Also, she made clear the basis of her complaint she was not disputing Oshoway’s fee, but instead his “lack of communication, and zealous representation for the work I thought I paid him to do.“

“One of my concerns,“ Cottrill said, “is the area of West Virginia that Mr. Oshoway works from is severely economically depressed and I wonder how often this sort of legal tomfoolery happens.“

“I fear for the people of Calhoun and Gilmer counties that have no other means of justice as Mr. Oshoway doesn’t seem the least bit inclined to follow up on clients’ needs or wishes once he has been paid,“ Cottrill added. “And even then, Mr. Oshoway doesn’t seem to feel the need to accurately reflect records of payment received by those clients.“

When reached for a comment about Cottrill’s complaint, Oshoway said “I was not aware it.“ Also, he said “I wouldn’t comment on it” after seeing it.

According to ODC, Cottrill’s complaint is one of four pending against Oshoway.

~~  Lawrence Smith - The WV Record  ~~

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Ritchie County Genealogy & History Fair – 04.28.12

The first ever Ritchie County Genealogy & History Fair will be held Saturday, April 28, 2012, 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, at the Ritchie County High/Middle School Commons Area.

Vendors will be selling genealogy and history books, maps and other items.

Admission is free and a concession stand will be available.

Vendors slated to participate include:

•  Calhoun County Historical & Genealogical Society

•  Doddridge County Historical Society

•  Gilmer County Historical Society

•  Hackers Creek Pioneer Descendants (Lewis County)

•  Harrison County Genealogical Society

•  Marion County Historical Society

•  Ritchie County Historical Society

•  Roane County Historical Society

•  Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike Alliance

•  Upshur County Historical Society

•  Genealogy by David Boggs

•  Genealogy by Lockhart

•  Mountain Heritage Books

For further information, email: “info@ritchiehistoricalsociety.com” or call 304.643.2738 or toll free 866.363.8416.

G-Comm™: In a Pickle

Last week, I was driving back to Morgantown from Spencer via Weston when I stumbled across something that made me bring my car to a screeching halt—the unincorporated community of Pickle Street. Now, for those of you who often travel U.S. Route 33 in Lewis County, the name Pickle Street may not faze you. But I was tickled. The community wasn’t named Pickle, which would be amusing in its own right, but Pickle Street. The sign is not located at a street intersection, either. I did what any innocent traveler would do. I stopped, took a picture, and then I Googled it.

Here’s what Wikipedia says: “Pickle Street is an unincorporated community in Lewis County, West Virginia, United States, on U.S. Route 33 along Leading Creek. It is mostly a residential area, but it has an auction house. At a general store near Pickle Street, but before it was established, asking for pickles was a code for whiskey.”

Who knew? Give me a pickle meant give me whiskey. If there was ever a doubt, West Virginians sure are ingenious.

This got me thinking about other towns that have caused me to sharply pull over to the side of the road, risking life and limb, to take a photo of signs announcing clever names. There’s Cucumber, West Virginia—it has the distinction of being the only town named Cucumber in the world. There’s Big Ugly. War. Looneyville. HooHoo. Needmore. Thursday. And even a community named Odd.

I grew up down the Elk River from End of the World, Booger Hole, and Twist and Chute. I’ve also lived in Pinch, Big Chimney, Duck, and Big Otter. And the funny thing is (with the exception of Booger Hole, which still makes the hair on my arms stand up), I never thought that those town and community names were…well…odd.

~~  Nikki Bowman - WVLiving ~~

Monday, April 16, 2012

GSC Trillium Reading Announced

The 9th annual Glenville State College Trillium Reading is scheduled for Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at 4:00 PM in the Mollohan Campus Community Center Room 315.

The Trillium is a literary and arts journal that contains artwork, poetry, and prose created by GSC students, faculty, staff, and community members.

“This is a great opportunity for the authors and artists featured in the Trillium to bring their works to life in front of an audience. I was thrilled with the amount of submissions we received this year and the quality of the work. I invite all to attend this event,“ said GSC Trillium Editor Rose Johnson.

Free copies of the 2012 Trillium will be available at the reading as well as in the Mollohan Campus Community Center, the Robert F. Kidd Library, the GSC Department of English in the Heflin Administration Building, and other locations on the campus.

For more information about the Trillium reading, contact the faculty advisor Dr. Jonathan Minton at “jonathan.minton@glenville.edu” or 304.462.6322.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Trooper Also Defendant in ‘96 Shooting Death of Calhoun Woman

The WV Record Reports:

Records show prior to the one filed against him recently, a State Trooper was also named as a co-defendant in another civil rights suit involving a Calhoun County woman 16 years ago.

Last month, Jackie L. Denmark filed suit in U.S. District Court against Cpl. D.B. Starcher accusing him of falsely arresting her in March 2010 on charges of aiding and abetting kidnapping. In her suit, Denmark alleges Starcher arrested her in an effort to get her disclose the location of David Wayne Beech, a missing teenager from Roane County.

Denmark’s son, Seth, was also arrested in March 2010, and charged with kidnapping Beech, whose body has yet to be discovered. Though charged with it last year, Seth Denmark was formally indicted for Beech’s murder by a special grand jury last month.

Last April, the aiding and abetting charge against Jackie Denmark was dismissed.

In 1998, Starcher was named as the lead defendant in suit filed by Donald Jones, as the administrator of the estate of his wife, Patricia. In his suit, Jones alleged Starcher, the State Police, then Calhoun County Sheriff William Stemple and Deputy Sheriff George Settles were negligent in shooting, and killing Patricia two years earlier when Starcher and Stemple were called to the Joneses home in Big Springs in response to an apparent domestic dispute.

‘Confrontation’ turns fatal

According to the suit, which was filed on June 11, 1998, also in U.S. District Court, Starcher and Settles were dispatched to the Jones home on June 14, 1996 “to investigate an allegation of domestic violence.“ After arriving at the scene, Starcher and Settles “entered into a confrontation” with Patricia.

The nature of the confrontation is not specified in the suit. However, as a result “Starcher and/or ...George Settle [sic], negligently, willfully, wantonly and intentionally, in disregard of the civil rights of the said Patricia Ann Jones, shot and killed” her.

The suit does not provide much detail about Jones’ death except she “was severely wounded by one or more gunshots and later died.“ Also, the suit maintains Starcher and Settles “used excessive force to restrain ... Jones at a time when they were not permitted to do so.“

According to an Associated Press report in the June 16, 1996, edition of the Charleston Gazette, Jones, 38, was shot after she pointed a rifle at Starcher and Settles, and fired one shot. According to 1st Sgt. Carl Berlin with the State Police’s Spencer detachment, “Police returned fire, killing Jones.“

Four days later, The Calhoun Chronicle reported that, after they arrived at her house, Jones pointed an unspecified weapon at Starcher and Settles. When she fired at Starcher, “Settles had no choice but to fire once, fatally wounding Jones,“ the article said.

According to her death certificate, Jones died of a shotgun wound to her chest.

Prior to the shooting, The Chronicle reported Stemple, and Deputy Steve Lampos spoke with Jones via telephone. Along with Starcher and Settles, Stemple and Lampos “repeatedly asked and ordered [Jones] to surrender her weapon.“

According to The Chronicle, Donald Jones was not at the home after Starcher and Settles arrived.

Along with a claim the State Police did not do likewise with Starcher, the suit alleges Stemple “failed adequately to train or otherwise direct ... George Settle [sic], concerning the rights of citizens, thereby causing ... [him], to engage in the unlawful conduct described above.“ According to the state Law Enforcement Professional Standards Subcommittee, Settles never received the training necessary to be a certified law enforcement officer.

Suit dies, too

In the suit, Jones asked that he be awarded $500,000 in damages for Patricia’s death. Also, his attorney, Keith White of St. Marys, asked he recover the costs of litigating the suit, including his fee.

Records show, those proved to be minimal as Judge Irene B. Keeley dismissed the suit on Jan. 25, 1999 on the grounds White failed to serve any of the defendants with a copy of the complaint, and a summons. Though Keeley dismissed the suit without prejudice which allowed an opportunity for White to re-file it, records show he never did.

The West Virginia Record attempted to obtain a comment from White about the suit. He did not return repeated calls by presstime.

Also, repeated messages left with Settles and Stemple were not returned by presstime.

Because he was constitutionally barred from seeking a third successive term as sheriff, Stemple successfully ran for the House of Delegates in 1996. He held the seat, which, along with Calhoun included Gilmer and Clay counties, until 2008.

In May’s Democratic primary, Stemple, 64, is again a candidate for sheriff. His opponent is incumbent Sheriff Allen Parsons, who succeeded Stemple in 1997.

Currently, Starcher is assigned to the Wirt County detachment in Elizabeth.

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia case number 98-cv-96

~~  Lawrence Smith - The WV Record  ~~

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Bake and Book Sale at Gilmer Public Library – 04.13.12

Friends of Gilmer Public Library are sponsoring a Bake and Book Sale at the library on Friday, April 13, 2012 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

Find a paperback for your next road trip!

Tuesday, April 03, 2012

Ohio Man Appeals Dismissal of Ethics Complaint against Gilmer Prosecutor

The WV Record Reports:

Citing a failure to consider new evidence, an Ohio man is asking a state ethics panel to reconsider his complaint of improper conduct by Gilmer County’s prosecuting attorney in his 2005 criminal case.

The Office of Disciplinary Counsel on Sept. 6 dismissed the complaint Dan Bingman filed against Gerry Hough. In her dismissal letter, Lawyer Disciplinary Counsel Jessica Donahue Rhodes, said the information Bingman included in his Aug. 24 complaint of Hough paying one of Bingman’s relatives to testify against him, and advertisements Hough placed in the Glenville Democrat-Pathfinder accusing Bingman of “cyberbulling,“ not only failed to show a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct, but was also time-barred.

“Nothing in those two (2) documents reflect [sic] any violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct,“ Rhodes said. “Furthermore, you have not provided any proof that Mr. Hough paid Mrs. Rafferty to testify during the trial.“

“Those allegations are far too vague and unclear to discern what actions you believe Mr. Hough has taken that amount to an allegation of a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct,“ Rhodes added. “It appears you have been aware of most of what you allege in your second complaint when your first complaint was filed and two (2) years before the first complaint was filed.“

“Thus, your complaint appears to be time-barred,“ Rhodes said.

Records show, Bingman, of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, was indicted in March 2005 by the Gilmer County grand jury on a charge of grand larceny, a felony. He was accused of stealing, and later selling farm equipment, a brush hog, valued at nearly $2,500 on Jan. 31, 2002.

However, a jury on Dec. 14, 2005, convicted Bingman of petit larceny, a misdemeanor. Bingman maintained he should’ve never been indicted, let alone convicted, since the brush hog was valued at less than $400, and sat idle for over 20 years on property belonging to his family.

In his complaint, Bingman accused Hough of suborning perjury by getting Roanna Rafferty, Bingman’s aunt, to testify falsely she had a 1/6th interest in the property. Also, Bingman maintains Hough was aware the value of the brush hog was well below the $1,000 threshold for a grand larceny charge.

The allegations raised in his Aug. 24 complaint were similar to ones raised in a complaint he filed against Hough on Dec. 20, 2007, that was dismissed a month later. However, in his response dated Sept. 8 to their dismissal letter, Bingman said ODC failed to consider two new pieces of evidence included in his recent complaint that came to light last year.

One was a title opinion that was introduced last July in a civil suit showing Rafferty did not own the 1/6th share of the property she claimed. Another was bills received in October for back taxes on the property that, Bingman said the county previously refused to let his family pay.

The title opinion and tax tickets, Bingman says, show that his new complaint against Hough not only falls within the statute of limitations, but also he had no business prosecuting him in what amounted to a family squabble.

“The new evidence in this case proves that it should not be time-barred,“ Bingman said. “It proves that due diligence was not practiced and a human being suffered severely as a result.“

“A case should never be brought to court by a Prosecutor who has not used due diligence to establish the facts,“ he added. “When Hough could not locate the 1/6th claimed, the court should have been notified (despite his embarrassment) a mistrial declared and perjury charges brought against the Prosecutors [sic] witness in my opinion.“

“Because there was no title proof of ownership, the jury, and the court could not know that there was equal ownership in a property dispute that somehow turned into a criminal case, although experts say it should have been a civil action all along.“

In response to his letter, Chief Lawyer Disciplinary Counsel Rachel L. Fletcher Cipoletti said ODC was treating Bingman’s dissatisfaction of their dismissal of his complaint as an appeal and would be placing it on the agenda for the next meeting of the Lawyer Disciplinary Board’s investigative panel. Though she did not say when the next meeting would take place, Cipoletti said she would notify Bingman in writing of their decision.

When reached for a comment about Bingman’s complaint prior to its dismissal, Hough said he had yet to see it. However, he said this was Bingman’s latest attempt to retry his case.

“Every citizen has a right to complain and have their voice heard somewhere,“ Hough said. “He’s been busy for the last four years reinventing the trial that took place, and his conviction, which was found by a jury of his peers guilty of larceny from his family.“

~~  Lawrence Smith - WV Record  ~~

Thursday, March 29, 2012

G-LtE™: ‘BULLYING STILL GOING ON AT GCHS’

Glenville Pathfinder. March 29th edition—

An article that should have been on the front page with much more that should have been written on this but….small write-up page four. I guess all the other stories on front page more important than students being injured at GCHC, For those who do not buy the paper, here it is:

BULLYING STILL GOING ON AT GCHS.

The victim was taken to the Dr. and there were bruises observed on his legs that measured several inches across. Currently, the student is back in school and “restraining orders” have been placed on all involved parties dictating that they stay away from each other. However, reportedly, no administrative disciplinary action was taken against the perpetrators of the violence.

My comment to this:

Does this surprise me, absolutely not.

What a shame that the GCHS Administrators, the Gilmer County Superintendent, the State Board of Education are so self-centered, unconcerned, heartless people that call themselves Educators that immediate action was not taken with the ones who are doing the bullying.

They say the Olweus Program to stop bullying has been put into place in all county schools.

Common sense tells me YOU THE ADMINISTRATORS AND EDUCATORS are responsible for following thru with this.

YOU have to make it work, YOU have to enforce it, not turn your back on the victims and let the ones responsible go scot free.

The teacher who seen all this, he/she is responsible also.

You should have had the backbone to stop it instead of telling the victim to go to his special education classroom.

To the teacher, if….this was your orders from your boss to turn your head you are still responsible for not turning them in. If…a child/student is seriously injured under your watch and I was the parent of that student your head would be mine as the old saying goes.

Had this boy been my child, there would be no way that I would have sent my child back to this school ever.

A child should not have to endure this kind of treatment.

Parents of students at the GCHS…you need to do something before a tragedy happens, and it could be your child.

This is not the first time this has happened and it won’t be the last time.

I would NOT consider sending my child to your school system under any circumstance.

I would have them home schooled and there would be NOTHING you could do.

Our children are being hurt
Author and Source on File

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Lewis County Man Sues Springfield Armory, Individuals for Gun Shot

A Lewis County man is suing Springfield Armory for a gun shot he sustained while at a friend’s residence.

Devon McCartney and James E. McCartney were also named as defendants in the suit.

On March 05, 2010, Joshua Shane Davisson was visiting the home of William H. McCartney with his friend Vernon Groves when Devon McCartney came to visit the residence, according to a complaint filed in Monongalia Circuit Court.

Davisson claims Devon McCartney and/or James McCartney are the owner(s) of a .40 caliber Springfield Armory XD-40 Subcompact pistol.

Devon McCartney negligently and carelessly transported the loaded gun from James McCartney’s home to the home of William McCartney and negligently and carelessly handled the gun causing it to discharge into Davisson, according to the suit.

Davisson claims as a result of the defendants’ negligence, he was shot in the sternum with the bullet ultimately becoming lodged in his left thigh.

James McCartney negligently permitted Devon McCartney to access the gun without verifying that they had the requisite knowledge to handle and/or disassemble the gun in a safe manner, according to the suit.

Davisson is seeking compensatory damages with pre- and post-judgment interest.

He is being represented by Timothy J. Manchin and Taylor B. Downs.

Monongalia Circuit Court case number: 12-C-148

~~  Kyla Asbury - WV Record  ~~

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Calhoun County: Crime Outpacing Last Year

The number of people living in tiny Calhoun County has barely changed in the past decade, but officials say serious crimes have been soaring.

Last week, a grand jury indicted four people in three deaths, one of them a 2-month-old girl.

The unrelated death of another infant is under investigation.

During the first quarter of 2012, the number of arrests and prosecutions has been outpacing last year, Magistrate Court Clerk Gary Smith told the Parkersburg News and Sentinel.

Authorities handled 86 felony crimes and 350 misdemeanors in all of 2011, he said.

By March 20, 2012 they had already handled 42 felonies and 102 misdemeanors.

“It seems to be escalating,“ said Smith, a longtime resident who until recently could recall only one murder in the county of 7,600.

In 2008 and 2009, the county had fewer than 55 felonies, he said, but during 2010, there were 70.

“We are a small, sleepy little town with a lot of stuff going right now,“ Smith said. “I don’t know what the answers are, but it doesn’t seem to be getting any better.“

Sheriff Alan Parsons, a resident since 1968, and Calhoun County Commissioner Bob Weaver say a stronger law enforcement presence in a region with chronically high unemployment could be driving the trend.

“After a number of years of fairly low performance, the West Virginia State Police have really stepped up to the plate,“ Weaver said. “... I am really happy with them. They are doing what they are supposed to do.“

West Virginia State Police spokesman Sgt. Michael Baylous said the agency is constantly shifting resources to meet the public’s needs.

Calhoun County Prosecutor Rocky Holmes — one of only seven part-time prosecutors in West Virginia — said the Grantsville Police Department and the sheriff’s department have added officers, too.

The state Department of Health and Human Resources, meanwhile, has increased the number of Child Protective Services workers in the county.

“We used to have one,“ Holmes said. “Now we have five.“

U.S. Census Bureau figures for Calhoun County show that more than 20% of residents live below the federal poverty level, compared with a statewide rate of about 17%.

The median household income of $26,922 was lower than the state average of $38,380 between 2006 and 2010, and the unemployment rate has remained among the highest in West Virginia.

February figures put Calhoun’s unemployment rate at 13.2%, behind only Hancock County at 13.9%. Neighboring Wirt and Roane counties were at 13%.

Monday, March 26, 2012

West Virginia Court Spells Out Re-Registry Requirements

A West Virginia appeals court has ruled that sex offenders are only required to re-register their information after a conviction, not after an arrest.

The court ruled last week that the West Virginia State Police lacked the right to arrest 30-year-old Timothy Judge of Tyler County for failure to re-register on a sex-offender list upon his release from jail in 2010.

Judge complied with re-registering after being convicted on a third-degree sexual abuse charge in 2002.

He was arrested in May 2010, on a charge of accessory after the fact to breaking and entering.

Police arrested Timothy Judge because he didn’t update his sex-offender registry entry.

The Charleston Gazette reports that last week’s opinion says the language regarding the offender-registration requirements should be rewritten to more clearly reflect the law’s requirements.

Sunday, March 25, 2012

G-Comm™: Inter-County School Project Could Open Doors To More Change

A high school English teacher years ago warned me to be careful when using the word “unique” to describe an event or even an idea. And my most memorable example of extremely poor usage of this word was a newspaper colleague years ago who described something as “very unique and quite different.“

But Executive Director Mark Manchin of the state School Building Authority was justified in his usage of the word “unique” to describe a proposed inter-county elementary school planned by the school boards of Lewis and Gilmer counties. At last week’s SBA meeting, Lewis County School Superintendent Joe Mace and Gilmer County School Superintendent Ron Blankenship presented a plan to merge two elementary schools they described as “decrepit” into a new consolidated inter-county school that would straddle the border between the two central West Virginia counties.

There are seven potential sites for the school intended to replace Troy Elementary School in Gilmer County and Alum Bridge Elementary School in Lewis County. The initial cost estimate for the new inter-county school is $11.1 million.

It is one of 23 proposed construction projects submitted to SBA for the next bond issue for new school construction that would require a total expenditure of about $170 million if all 23 were to be authorized. However, the proposed bond sale in May will only provide about $40 million for this latest round of statewide public school construction.

Lewis County’s population is more than twice that of Gilmer County and since most of the 20-acre site that is the preferred location for the new school would be in Lewis County, that county would be the financial agent for the project. But the two counties would split the cost of purchasing the property for the new school.

According to a staff member of the state Board of Education this is the only inter-county plan currently under consideration. There was one similar agreement previously between Logan and Lincoln counties.

The economics of this idea are compelling. The two counties estimate this proposal would result in an annual savings of more than $500,000 and another $500,000 in current expenses that could be avoided. That’s probably why Manchin said last week that he “fully anticipates” the SBA will award some of the $40 million bond sale planned for May to this inter-county project.

The SBA will make final decisions on which of the many deserving school construction projects will be funded at an April 23 meeting. One of the other projects is a $14 million proposal for a different elementary school to be constructed in Gilmer County.

Some people hope this is the first step toward “regional school management” and elimination of the 55 separate county boards of education, replacing them with so-called “regional school management areas.“ It’s unlikely this single inter-county elementary school project can do that. But the opportunity to be more user-friendly to youngsters and their parents along the border of these two counties is a worthwhile move.

So much for the high profile attempt to woo a $2 billion cracker plant to West Virginia by providing a property tax break of as much as $25 million to $30 million a year for the next 25 years. The plant will be built in neighboring Pennsylvania, just a few tantalizing miles from this state’s northern panhandle border.

Governor Earl Ray Tomblin had the signed bill in his hand when he flew to Texas to make his pitch to Shell Oil Co. in late January but the company decided to locate the new facility in another state. There is still hope for a small cracker plant somewhere in the Kanawha Valley but it will not reach the $2 billion minimum cost required to take advantage of this lavish tax incentive.

The consolation prize may be a $300 million ethane catalytic “cracker” plant that would provide new jobs for as many as 200 people at the Institute Industrial Park in western Kanawha County by 2015.

An announcement on this project, originally planned for last week, apparently has been postponed for a few weeks, according to state Commerce Secretary Keith Burdette. But he insists that he is “very optimistic” about the smaller facility planned by Aither Chemicals. The more certain aspect is that state officials apparently can expect this company to request a similar tax break from West Virginia as a condition to make this happen.

Good grades are always appreciated, whether it’s your child or even state government. And in the case of West Virginia, the state’s ranking for providing online information about how the state’s tax revenues are spent has gone from the basement to the penthouse, according to a study released by a national public interest group’s rankings of the 50 states.

The report, entitled “Follow the Money, 2012: How the 50 States Rate in Providing On-Line Access to Government Spending Data,“ indicates West Virginia has jumped from a dismal failing score of 28 to a score of 91 in one year, which ranks the Mountain State as sixth in the country. This state’s improvement can be traced to its decision to copy the example of Texas, which ranked first both in the 2011 and 2012 reports, and set up the TransparencyWV.org website.

~~  Tom Miller - Retired State Government Reporter for The Herald-Dispatch – Huntington, WV ~~

Friday, March 23, 2012

G-Comm™: Please Stop Apologizing

THIS week, Robert De Niro made a joke about first ladies, and Newt Gingrich said it was “inexcusable and the president should apologize for him.” Of course, if something is “inexcusable,” an apology doesn’t make any difference, but then again, neither does Newt Gingrich.

Mr. De Niro was speaking at a fund-raiser with the first lady, Michelle Obama. Here’s the joke: “Callista Gingrich. Karen Santorum. Ann Romney. Now do you really think our country is ready for a white first lady?”

The first lady’s press secretary declared the joke “inappropriate,” and Mr. De Niro said his remarks were “not meant to offend.” So, as these things go, even if the terrible damage can never be undone, at least the healing can begin. And we can move on to the next time we choose sides and pretend to be outraged about nothing.

When did we get it in our heads that we have the right to never hear anything we don’t like? In the last year, we’ve been shocked and appalled by the unbelievable insensitivity of Nike shoes, the Fighting Sioux, Hank Williams Jr., Cee Lo Green, Ashton Kutcher, Tracy Morgan, Don Imus, Kirk Cameron, Gilbert Gottfried, the Super Bowl halftime show and the ESPN guys who used the wrong cliché for Jeremy Lin after everyone else used all the others. Who can keep up?

This week, President Obama’s chief political strategist, David Axelrod, described Mitt Romney’s constant advertising barrage in Illinois as a “Mittzkrieg,” and instantly the Republican Jewish Coalition was outraged and called out Mr. Axelrod’s “Holocaust and Nazi imagery” as “disturbing.” Because the message of “Mittzkrieg” was clear: Kill all the Jews. Then the coalition demanded not only that Mr. Axelrod apologize immediately but also that Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz “publicly rebuke” him. For a pun! For punning against humanity!

The right side of America is mad at President Obama because he hugged the late Derrick Bell, a law professor who believed we live in a racist country, 22 years ago; the left side of America is mad at Rush Limbaugh for seemingly proving him right.

If it weren’t for throwing conniption fits, we wouldn’t get any exercise at all.

I have a better idea. Let’s have an amnesty — from the left and the right — on every made-up, fake, totally insincere, playacted hurt, insult, slight and affront. Let’s make this Sunday the National Day of No Outrage. One day a year when you will not find some tiny thing someone did or said and pretend you can barely continue functioning until they apologize.

If that doesn’t work, what about this: If you see or hear something you don’t like in the media, just go on with your life. Turn the page or flip the dial or pick up your roll of quarters and leave the booth.

The answer to whenever another human being annoys you is not “make them go away forever.” We need to learn to coexist, and it’s actually pretty easy to do. For example, I find Rush Limbaugh obnoxious, but I’ve been able to coexist comfortably with him for 20 years by using this simple method: I never listen to his program. The only time I hear him is when I’m at a stoplight next to a pickup truck.

When the lady at Costco gives you a free sample of its new ham pudding and you don’t like it, you spit it into a napkin and keep shopping. You don’t declare a holy war on ham.

I don’t want to live in a country where no one ever says anything that offends anyone. That’s why we have Canada. That’s not us. If we sand down our rough edges and drain all the color, emotion and spontaneity out of our discourse, we’ll end up with political candidates who never say anything but the safest, blandest, emptiest, most unctuous focus-grouped platitudes and cant. In other words, we’ll get Mitt Romney.

~~  Bill Maher – NYT ~~

From A Small Michigan Newspaper in Tawas City, Michigan

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

G-FYI™: Little Action Taken in Clay Man’s FOIA Suit against County Development Agency

The WV Record Reports:

A year after it was filed, a Clay County man’s Freedom of Information Act suit remains at square one.

Since he filed it on Feb. 17, 2011, Michael Boggs’ suit in Kanawha Circuit Court to compel the Clay County Business Development Authority to disclose three years’ of records has seen little action. The most recent was a motion filed Dec. 9 by his attorney David R. Karr Jr. to file an amended complaint.

Karr’s motion came in response to a combined answer, and motion to dismiss filed by the state Development Office which was named as co-defendant in Boggs’ suit. The WVDO is the reason the suit is in Kanawha Circuit as after Boggs filed his original suit in Clay Circuit Court two years ago against the BDA and the Clay County Commission, Judge Jack Alsop dismissed it finding WVDO had an interest in determining some of the funds it gave the Authority.

Kanawha County has original jurisdiction in lawsuits involving state agencies.

In its answer, and motion to dismiss filed July 19, Assistant Attorney General Mary Downey denied Boggs’ allegations. Also, she asserted a defense WVDO “acted within its legal rights and within the proper standard of practice in the conduct of all activities.“

In response to Downey’s motion, Karr stated the amended complaint corrected the “perceived flaws in the original complaint argued by the West Virginia Development Office to exist, as per the West Virginia Development Office’s motion to dismiss previously filed herein, which has yet be heard by the Court.“ Among the language omitted in the amended complaint is Boggs’ claim WVDO is not only CCBDA’s funding source, but it also “has an interest in the determination of various receipts and disbursements.“

Boggs’ amended complaint contains all the original claims he made against CCBDA and the Commission that include the Authority holding meetings, and making decisions without the minimum number of members, failing to publish its quarterly and annual reports from 2008-2010 and re-appointing him as member on a month-to-month basis instead of a three-year term. Also, the amended complaint continues to aver Boggs’ termination from the Board in July 2010 was due to his refusal in “remaining quiet about the above-mentioned statutory violations”

Records show, Judge Charles E. King Jr. has yet to rule on any of the motions including another one made by Karr seeking default judgment against the Commission and the Authority for failing to answer Boggs’ suit after 30 days of receiving notice of it.

Kanawha Circuit Court case number 11-C-269

~~  Lawrence Smith – WV Record ~~

OddlyEnough™: People Are Stealing Tide Detergent and Using It to Buy Drugs

So say the latest reports about a “crime wave” sweeping the nation. According to multiple news sources, theft of Tide Detergent is soaring across the country, forcing retailers like CVS to consider placing alarms on each bottle as cities establish special task forces to put a halt to the thefts.

The popular detergent has apparently become a kind of currency on the black market. Tide, which sells for about $12 for a 100-oz. bottle and around $18 for 150 oz., reportedly goes for about half that on the streets. Some thieves have resold stolen bottles to stores, and the detergent has supposedly even been showing up in the homes of busted drug dealers.

One law enforcement official in Maryland told The Daily: “We sent in an informant to buy drugs. The dealer said, ‘I don’t have drugs, but I could sell you 15 bottles of Tide.’ … Upstairs in the drug dealer’s bedroom was about 14 bottles of Tide laundry soap. We think [users] are trading it for drugs.”

Another policeman in Oregon said that Tide thieves buy heroin and meth with it.  In one drug raid, more Tide than cocaine was found, and one man reportedly stole $25,000 of the detergent over a 15-month period before he was finally busted.

The detergent is described as “liquid gold” by the authorities who are pursuing the thieves, which has so far proved difficult. “There’s no serial numbers and it’s impossible to track,” a Kentucky police officer told The Daily. “It’s the item to steal.”

And those thieves are brazen. Some simply walk into a supermarket, fill up their carts and then dart toward a getaway vehicle outside. In one incident, a security video showed a man who had made off with a cart full of Tide reselling the detergent hours later.

So far, it appears that it’s just Tide that’s the focus of the thefts and not other brands like All or Wisk, apparently because of Tide’s popularity and recognizable color and logo.

The story of the Tide detergent thieves has been widely reported, but still appears to have been at least partly exaggerated. While anecdotal evidence abounds that this is truly occurring, there are little to no hard statistics backing up the claim of a crime wave.

Fox News quoted a handful of police officers and retailers who disputed that the thefts are widespread. “We are not experiencing a ‘wave’ of Tide thefts,” a CVS/pharmacy public relations director said. He did confirm that the retailer does have security devices on Tide bottles in a few markets but said the thefts are nothing new.

~~  Josh Sanburn – TM ~~

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Election 2012: Why Ron Paul May Cut a Deal with Mitt Romney

For Ron Paul, victory is finally in sight. No, not a swearing-in ceremony next January 20 or even a single statewide win. Halfway through the primary season, Paul has won only a preference poll in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and he is running dead last in delegates among the four GOP candidates for President. He has spent a lot, if not always wisely: the $31.55 he has dropped per vote (more than even Mitt Romney) is a sum that might shock even a Democrat.

But winning the presidency was never Paul’s foremost goal, and as he nears the end of his last presidential crusade, he has one more chance to promote his ideas. The Republican race is a muddled mess. Even after Romney’s Southern losses, only he has a real shot at amassing the 1,144 delegates required to wrap up the nomination, and he would then face the task of unifying the GOP’s warring factions. Which is why Paul’s campaign has sent discreet signals to Camp Romney that the keys to Paul’s shop can be had for the right price.

History suggests the two men are already in cahoots. Throughout the primary, Paul has been Romney’s secret weapon. During the 20 GOP debates, Paul attacked Romney’s rivals a total of 39 times while sparing Romney entirely, according to an analysis by the liberal group ThinkProgress. Paul leaped to Romney’s defense when his tenure at Bain Capital and his taste for firing insurance companies came under attack, and skewered a series of Romney antagonists in TV ads. “He is our deputy campaign manager,” jokes one Romney ally.

Paul’s advisers bristle at suggestions that the libertarian icon is in league with the GOP front runner. They say Paul still has a shot at the nomination if he can hold Romney beneath the delegate threshold until Tampa and then force a floor fight that sends delegates fleeing to Paul on a secondary ballot. This may be the company line, but the scenario is improbable enough that even Paul has conceded his “chances are slim.”

Even as they tamp down rumors of a pact, Paul’s advisers concede that the friendship between Paul and Romney is the initial step toward a deal. And behind the scenes, discussions between the two campaigns — as well as initial discussions with the Santorum and Gingrich camps, according to one Paul adviser — are slowly taking shape.

An alliance could benefit both camps. Paul’s support would go a long way toward helping Romney with a bloc of young Republicans who have been turning out in huge numbers for Paul and who otherwise might stay home in November. It might also help Romney grab all of Paul’s delegates. Such an arrangement would help Paul get what a Romney ally called “an important speaking role at the convention.”

Paul’s camp contends he will exceed the 270 delegates Romney garnered in 2008, which earned him an undercard slot on the penultimate evening in St. Paul. Josh Putnam, a political scientist at Davidson College who studies delegate allocation, notes that Paul’s campaign hasn’t furnished evidence to back up those claims. But he says there is a chance Paul could “completely exploit the system and take delegates from caucus states where there’s no written rule to how delegates are allocated.” Paul’s aides say they expect to win a plurality of delegates in a batch of blue-to-purple caucus states where Paul failed to win the popular vote, including Iowa, Minnesota, Maine, Nevada and Washington.

Paul’s acolytes insist their man cannot be bought. “Romney wants the ring of power. He wants it so bad,” says Doug Wead, a Paul senior adviser. “Negotiating with Ron Paul is very difficult because he doesn’t want anything. If he got the ring, he would throw it into Mount Doom.”

Maybe so, but at 76, Paul is understandably concerned about the future of his movement. Aides say if Paul can’t win the nomination, four legislative priorities would top the Texas Representative’s wish list: deep spending cuts that lead to a balanced budget; the restoration of civil liberties; a commitment to reclaim the legislative branch’s right to declare war, which it abdicated to the executive branch in recent decades; and reforms that shore up the U.S. monetary system, such as an audit of the Federal Reserve or competing-currency legislation. Paul might also be enticed, says campaign chairman Jesse Benton, by the prospect of serving as a presidential adviser, a Cabinet position for someone in his orbit or “perhaps a vice presidency.”

Not for himself, but rather his son. Rand Paul, the junior senator from Kentucky and a Tea Party icon, is expected to launch his own White House bid in 2016. Being on the ticket now — or even being mentioned for it — would be a helpful step. Says one Paul adviser: “If you’re talking about putting Rand on the ticket, of course that would be worth delivering our people to Romney.”

Romney is unlikely to go for that. At the same time, Paul’s backers recognize that selling supporters on an alliance with Romney carries special risks, since Paul’s bond with his backers is predicated on his record of principled stands. A pact would have to be done “very cautiously,” says Benton. “We wouldn’t ask our people to do that if we worried they were just being co-opted or that we were in some way selling out.”

But it may soon be time for Paul’s army to decide if it wants to win or lose in the fall. “There’s clearly something going on between the two of them, and that’s a very good thing,” says David Adams, a Kentucky Tea Party strategist who helmed Rand Paul’s Senate primary campaign. “The main goal is stopping this lurch to the left. Mitt Romney and Ron Paul can go a long way toward healing what ails our nation.”

~~  Katy Steinmetz - TM ~~

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

West Virginia Election Law Code Book Now Available for Download to Amazon Kindle

The West Virginia Election Law codebook is now available to download on the Amazon Kindle and devices with the free Kindle application.

Click Here to Download from Amazon.com, where you can download the codebook to your Kindle or smartphone.

The Kindle edition of the codebook costs less than a dollar is searchable, and readers can leave bookmarks at important locations.

The new codebook, which was released in print in February, is also available for sale in its paper format in the Secretary of State’s Office. The cost is $25 per paper copy.

While the Kindle version of the codebook does not include all of the case law annotations provided in the hard copy, there are features that are exclusive to the Kindle version. The Kindle version includes the Voting Rights Act of 1965 as amended, the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) of 1986 as amended, the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA/Motor Voter) of 1993 (as amended), and the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002 (as amended).

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

G-FYI™: West Virginia Shield Law

On March 12, 2011 the West Virginia state legislature enacted H.B. 2159, adding §57-3-10, “Reporters’ Privilege,” to the Code of West Virginia. The statute, which was signed by Acting Governor Earl Ray Tomblin in April and took effect June 10, extends a qualified privilege with few limitations to reporters seeking to protect confidential sources of information, supplementing existing state constitutional protection.

Under the law, reporters cannot be “compelled to testify in civil, criminal, administrative, or grand jury proceedings” without “the consent of the confidential source.” Reporters also cannot be compelled “to produce any information or testimony that would identify a confidential source” without the consent of the source. The privilege may be overcome, however, when the testimony “is necessary to prevent imminent death, serious bodily injury, or unjust incarceration.”

The statute defines a reporter as “a person who regularly gathers, prepares, collects, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, or publishes news or information that concerns matters of public interest for dissemination to the public for a substantial portion of the person’s livelihood, or a supervisor, or employer of that person in that capacity.” The law also extends to student journalists, “provided that [the] student reporter at an accredited educational institution … meets all of the requirements of this definition, except that his or her reporting may not provide a portion of his or her livelihood.”

The West Virginia legislation also mandates that the section not be read “to limit any existing constitutional protections afforded any person under the United States or West Virginia Constitutions,” a provision which, in an April 06, 2011 report, the RCFP called “significant … in light of [West Virginia] courts’ general acceptance of the state Supreme Court’s articulation of a qualified reporter’s privilege in Hudok v. Henry.” In Hudok, 389 S.E.2d 188 (WV 1989), reporters claimed a privilege under the free press clause of the First Amendment and under Article II, Section 7 of the West Virginia Constitution to decline to answer questions or to divulge information obtained in the course of newsgathering. The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia held “disclosure of a reporter’s confidential sources or news-gathering materials may not be compelled except upon a clear and specific showing that the information is highly material and relevant, necessary or critical to the maintenance of the claim, and not obtainable from other available sources.” The original draft of the shield law contained the Hudok test, but the House Judiciary Committee ultimately omitted that language.

Media and First Amendment advocates supported the law, but not without some skepticism. In an Editor’s Log blog post on The Parkersburg (W. Va.) News and Sentinel website, News and Sentinel Executive Editor Jim Smith wrote, “the bottom line is with a strong shield law, the public gets information that may be vital to it and its understanding of events of the day or government-related activities.” But Smith also expressed concern: “It will be interesting to see how effective the law is in practice. Unfortunately, there always seems to be a broad difference between the intent and spirit of a law and how it is actually followed.”

Student Press Law Center (SPLC) Director Frank LoMonte praised the student journalist provision of the bill in a blog post on the organization’s website on March 14, saying the bill would make West Virginia’s shield law among the strongest in the nation for student journalists. In a March 10 column in the Charleston, W.Va. Daily Mail, two days before the law passed, LoMonte encouraged the West Virginia Legislature to recognize student journalists as it considered the measure. “With the ranks of full-time salaried journalists shrinking, unpaid college students increasingly are providing the news coverage that communities rely on to stay informed. Student journalists assume all of the same risks and responsibilities that professionals do, and they should be entitled to all of the same protections,” he wrote.

The new shield law may be applied for the first time after the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, the state’s highest court, held that a trial judge erred in ordering a newspaper to reveal the identities of anonymous sources and documents in a defamation suit. Lincoln Journal v. Hustead, No. 35734, 2011 W. Va. LEXIS 25 (W. Va. May 2, 2011)

In that case, The Lincoln (WV) Journal and individual reporters petitioned the Supreme Court of Appeals for a writ of prohibition to prevent Judge Jane Hustead from enforcing a September 14, 2010 order compelling them to reveal sources and newsgathering materials. Hustead’s order stemmed from a series of articles in The Lincoln Journal that alleged illegal campaign donations by the owner of a rival newspaper and other individuals to local candidates in 2008 primary elections. The reports cited several anonymous sources and Lincoln County Prosecuting Attorney William J. “Jackie” Stevens II. The stories also referred to copies of the criminal complaints that had been submitted to the paper and to Stevens. The state’s high court ruled May 02 that the lower court “was required to separately identify each allegedly defamatory article with specificity, each source therein that the plaintiffs sought through discovery, and thereupon conduct for each article a separate Hudok analysis,” rather than analyze them all together.

Because the lower court review will be conducted after the new shield law is in place, it may benefit the newspaper. David Barnette, The Lincoln Journal’s lawyer and general counsel for the West Virginia Broadcasters Association, told the RCFP for a May 09 story that when the case undergoes further review, the newspaper may avoid the Hudok analysis if the court applies the new shield law, although the law allows the reviewing judge to consider the Hudok factors if he or she chooses. By applying the Hudok test, Barnette said, “The court can go beyond what the Legislature can do.”

Since West Virginia trial judge erred when she ordered a newspaper to reveal the identities of anonymous sources and documents in a defamation suit against the paper, the state’s highest court ruled differently.

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia returned the case to the lower court, which must identify and analyze each allegedly defamatory statement and the confidential source who made the statement separately.

Cabell Circuit Judge F. Jane Hustead failed to undertake this specific analysis when she ordered The Lincoln Journal to reveal anonymous sources referred to in a series of articles alleging that the owner of a rival newspaper and other individuals illegally contributed money to local candidates in the 2008 primary elections, the Supreme Court of Appeals in Lincoln Journal v. Hon. Jane F. Hustead, Judge.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Billy Burke Book Signing to be Held at GSC

Employees at the Robert F. Kidd Library at Glenville State College are hosting a book signing event on Tuesday, March 13, 2012 from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM with local author Billy B. Burke.

Burke is a lifelong resident of Gilmer County who recently wrote and published his autobiography, Billy B. Burke: A Man of Many Hats..

The book tells the story of how a farm boy from Stouts Mills, West Virginia rose to become the Chairman of the influential House Finance Committee in the West Virginia Legislature, and the many interesting chapters of his life.

Burke is a 1977 graduate of GSC.

The book signing will take place in the main lobby of the library.. The event is open to the public, and light refreshments will be served.

Copies of Billy B. Burke: A Man of Many Hats will be available for sale.

For more information contact the GSC Robert F. Kidd Library at 304.462.4109.

Saturday, March 10, 2012

OddlyEnough™: US Regional Dictionary Gets In Last Word As It Wraps Up Work

The Dictionary of American Regional English has finally reached its final word - “zydeco” - as researchers wrap up almost 50 years of work charting the rich variety of American speech.

The dictionary’s official publication date is March 20 but lexicographers and word fans have been celebrating ever since its fifth and final volume emerged earlier this year.

“It truly is America’s dictionary,“ Ben Zimmer, a language columnist and lexicographer, told a Washington, D.C. news conference on Thursday.

He said when the final printed volume was delivered to its longtime editor, Joan Houston Hall, at a meeting of fellow dialect scholars: “There were audible gasps in the room.“

The Dictionary of American Regional English’s (DARE) 60,000 entries running from “A” to “zydeco,“ a style of Louisiana Cajun music, serve as a comprehensive sample of how American speech changes from region to region.

That space between sidewalk and curb? Depending on what part of the United States it is in, it can be called “parking,“ “devil’s strip,“ “swale,“ “parkway” or “tree lawn.“

Hall, who has headed the DARE project since 2000, said she was convinced fears that American English was becoming homogenized through television and mass media were unfounded.

“I don’t buy it. Yes, language changes at different rates and at different places,“ she said. “But most of the words among our family and friends that are regional we don’t even recognize as regional.“

Although the idea of a dictionary of American dialects had been around since the 1880s, the project did not take shape until 1962, when Frederick Cassidy, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was appointed editor.

The DARE project was based on interviews carried out in more than 1,000 communities from 1965 to 1970 by University of Wisconsin researchers.

They asked Americans about their ways of talking about kitchen implements, housing, animals, diseases, food, music and more.

For the next several decades, editors sifted the 2.3 million responses and a mass of written materials including newspapers, letters and diaries ranging from the Colonial period to the present.

The dictionary, published in five volumes by Harvard University’s Belknap Press and running to over 5,500 pages, includes words from about 70 languages, ranging from Bantu to Lithuanian to Choctaw. It retails for about $545.

Hall, who took over the project with Cassidy’s death in 2000, said the last volume took longer to complete, about 10 years, because of the wealth of materials that had become available online.

“We felt that there was so much of value we didn’t dare ignore it,“ she said at the news conference at the National Endowment for the Humanities, one of the book’s main sponsors.

Dictionary entries include “bealing” for an abscess, “bear claw” and “kolacky” for types of pastries, “calf rope” for surrender in children’s games, “dew poison” for a foot rash, “Lucy Bowles” for diarrhea, “rippet” for a disturbance or fight, and “pogonip” to describe a thick, cold fog.

Saturday, March 03, 2012

WV Record: Gilmer Sheriff Running for Magistrate with Dubious Educational Background

WV Record Reports:
Despite having questionable educational qualifications, a candidate for magistrate in Gilmer County is on this May’s primary election ballot.

Four candidates—Carol Wolfe, Alton Skinner, Bill Stalnaker and Mickey Metz—are seeking the Democratic nomination for one of the two seats for magistrate. Wolfe currently holds one of the seats, and the other is open following the announcement of incumbent Bob Minigh he would not be seeking re-election.

Of the four candidates, three—Wolfe, Skinner and Stalnaker—all have at least a high school diploma or GED, the minimum educational qualifications required by state law to run for magistrate. Additionally, Wolfe has a bachelor’s degree from Glenville State College in social work, and a master’s degree from Marshall University in counseling.

Metz, the incumbent sheriff who is constitutionally barred from seeking a third successive term, provided the Gilmer Clerk’s Office a diploma he received on Nov. 23 from Adison High School. The diploma contains signatures of four people purporting to be AHS’ president, superintendent, secretary of the school board and principal.

According to the Better Business Bureau, AHS is a diploma mill located in West Hollywood, Calif. It grants diplomas and GEDs to anyone who scores a 70 percent or better on its equivalency test and pays a fee of $369.

Because it failed to respond to 65 of 69 complaints lodged against it and does not possess any sort of competency license, the BBB of Los Angeles gave AHS an “F.“ Most of the complaints lodged against AHS allege its diplomas or GEDs “are not accredited, and are of little or no value to the student” and AHS “fails to disclose that the diploma is not recognized by higher learning institutions, and is not verifiable by potential employers.“

The West Virginia Record attempted to get a comment from Clerk Jean Butcher as to why Metz was allowed to be on the ballot despite having questionable educational qualifications. When contacted, she declined a comment, and referred questions to Metz.

Among the reasons he chose to get a diploma from AHS rather than obtain a GED locally Metz said, was convenience. Because the hours he puts in as sheriff did not allow him the opportunity to devote to traditional classroom study, Metz said getting a diploma via AHS “was easier to do online.“

Also, Metz said he was pleased AHS’ diplomas are “internationally accredited.“ When asked who accredits AHS, Metz couldn’t immediately recall.

On its Web site, AHS says it is accredited by the International Accreditation Committee of Online Schools. Though it maintains Web site that gives general information about itself, IACOOS does not disclose its location or the names of its staff members.

Also, a toll-free telephone number listed on IACOOS’ Web site is not in service.

Nevertheless, Metz says he’s confident the degree he received from AHS qualifies him to run for magistrate. Aside from that, both his field work and in-service training as sheriff during the last seven years makes him a qualified candidate.

“I’ve taken a lot of classes via the sheriff’s department that are from places like WVU and Marshall that give you credit for the work you do,“ Metz said.

Metz, 48, a Glenville resident, will appear second on the ballot behind Wolfe, and ahead of Skinner and Stalnaker. The top two vote-getters will then face Republican Lori Rosenburg, a political newcomer, in November.

A native of Bartow, Fla., Rosenburg graduated in December with a bachelor’s in behavioral science from GSC.

~~  03.02.2012 7:50 AM By Lawrence Smith -Kanawha Bureau – WV Record  ~~

Friday, March 02, 2012

Parkerburg News and Sentinel: Gilmer Sheriff Defends Credentials

Parkerburg News and Sentinel Reports:

The Gilmer County Sheriff running for magistrate is defending his credentials after questions were raised regarding his education.

Gilmer County Sheriff Mickey Metz is running for magistrate. To do so he had to submit proof of a high school diploma or a GED equivalent.

According to Gilmer County Clerk Jean Butcher, Metz provided a high school diploma from Adison High School, an online high school. The diploma was issued to Metz, Nov. 21, 2011.

“That is the one he gave me,“ Butcher said.

According to the West Virginia Secretary of State’s Office, a candidate for magistrate must have a high school diploma or an equivalent.

Metz, who is serving his second term as sheriff, said he is in full compliance with the requirements for a candidate for magistrate.

“My credentials have been sent to state department and looked at by attorneys and are well within compliance with West Virginia Code,“ Metz said.

Butcher said the only qualification to serve as sheriff is a candidate must be resident of the county.

West Virginia Secretary of State spokesman Jake Glance said he could neither confirm nor deny an investigation into Metz’s qualifications. Generally speaking, Glance said investigations become public through an indictment.

“Remember that we do not have arrest powers or prosecutorial powers,“ he stated in an email. “We conduct an investigation and then hand those findings off to a prosecuting attorney.“

“I can tell you right now there is nothing for them to investigate,“ Metz said.

According to its website, Adison offers a high school diploma package for $369. To receive the diploma, candidates are required to score a 70 or better on Adison’s high school equivalency test, a four-part test covering language, math science and social studies.

According to the Better Business Bureau website, there have been 67 complaints filed against Adison High School, including 28 that allege problems with its products and service. Among the complaints are allegations the high school diplomas or GEDs awarded by the school are not accredited and are of little or no value to the student.

Metz said his credentials, along with others, are globally recognized.

“I have been sheriff for eight years and have several different credits from different classes from other colleges that are globally and internationally recognized credentials,“ Metz said.

“I believe every voter in Gilmer County has the right to vote and make their own decision on who they want to be their elected officials and not have someone pushed on them,“ Metz added.

~~  By JODY MURPHY ~~

Thursday, March 01, 2012

G-LtE™: My Chuckle for The Day

I want to share a funny story in the Glenville Democrat for Feb. 29 front page, lower right hand corner under Area Briefs” for those in the county who do not buy the weekly paper.

Below is quoted word for word:

The Gilmer County Sheriff’s Department announced that several campaign signs have been removed from yards. Anyone caught stealing political campaign signs will be charged with Petit Larceny, a misdemeanor and punishable by up to one year in jail and/or up to $2,500 fine. The Sheriff’s Department asks that all political candidates please ask before placing signs on private property.

Hmmmmm. Let’s see, I can commit murder, buy, sell or use drugs, lie/steal, get caught driving drunk/drugs, commit rape, break into someone’s house, commit criminal/sexual acts with a minor, bully other students, give alcohol to minors and etc. and NOTHING happens. But….if I steal a political sign, I could get up to one year in jail and/or up to a $2,500 fine.

What’s wrong with this picture???

~~  Author and Source on File ~~

Monday, February 27, 2012

G-Comm™: Puppets, Lackeys And The Drums Of War

On RT (Russia Today) television the other night, it was reported that a recent poll indicated that over 50 % of the American people considered Iran to be a threat to the U.S. and felt it would be appropriate to invade them. It would not have been a surprise if Fox News, CNN or MSNBC had made such a preposterous suggestion. Intelligent viewers would assume that this was just another propaganda piece and not worth taking seriously. RT, however, ends to have honest reporting, and is not a mere mouthpiece for North America’s ruling class.

One could ponder the absurdity of believing that literally 50% of the American people are so bereft of the ability to think critically that such a poll could have any efficacy at all. A more fruitful inquiry, though, would not focus on the supposed results of the poll, but rather on the more obvious question of “Who did the poll?” Of course, one might expect that the poll was simply another example of manipulative governmental spokespeople pretending to have their bellicose agenda endorsed by public opinion. What the “poll” really points to, however, is the degree to which the American people are mislead on a daily basis by puppet institutions, mouthpieces and groups that are part of the oligarchy’s assaults on nations and people everywhere.

Rather than admitting our imperial objectives throughout the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and Africa, the United States trots out supposedly neutral third parties to support and applaud our actions everywhere. Thus, it is NATO, and not the U.S. military that takes the lead in destroying Libya or Syria, or anywhere else we demand that it shows up. It is the Arab League that condemns Syria, and calls for the murder of Bashar al-Assad, not the Pentagon or our own government. It is Israel, and not assassins from the Navy Seals or some other clandestine Special Operations Forces from the U.S. that kills Iranian scientists…. The list is endless.

Is the ever-increasing violence perpetrated by our government on independent nations to be accomplished so facilely? Is it merely a matter of the oligarchy trotting out some supposedly neutral, non-puppet voice, to endorse whatever atrocity they propose at the moment?

Certainly these so-called international institutions and groups have some credibility and influence on a bewildered public. But, are we, as a nation, so naïve and shallow as to believe that NATO, the Arab League, or militarist fanatics from Israel are making decisions that are not directed and issued by the U.S. military-industrial complex? The onslaught brought about as a result of our aggression internationally is of monumental proportions. Missile systems strategically located on the borders of countries that refuse refuse to be vassals of the U.S., special operations assassins, drones, “contractors” who are little more than hired mercenaries are our stock and trade. The policies, practices and attitudes of those who have seized control of the U.S. go far beyond the Democrats or Republicans. The same repressive oligarchs that brought us NAFTA, the supposed “war on terrorism,” Homeland Security, and the mass incarceration of our own people feel so immune from retaliation that they need do nothing more than present us with puppets and lackeys to repeat their lies – a docile American public will do nothing to stop this madness.

We are supposedly withdrawing our troops from Iraq, after our stunning “victory” there, but nothing is said of the mercenaries, or “contractors” as our leaders would characterize them, who have replaced the troops at greater cost to the American people than our own military would incur. We are “leaving” Afghanistan, after wasting 10 years, countless lives, and billions of dollars of our taxpayer’s money, only to remain there with civilian soldiers, not directly beholden to the Pentagon. And now we are about to invade Iran, as if our involvement there is in support of Israeli aggression. Israel could not exist for 30 minutes without U.S. military support. What garbage and nonsense it is to suggest that we are not the ones making the ultimate decision regarding the invasion of Iran!

With Tea Party spokespeople, right-wing think tanks, like the Hoover Institute, with high-placed politicians and government employees such as Clarence Thomas’ wife, Virginia Thomas (who drew income from the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank where she worked from 1998 to 2003 and from Liberty Central, a conservative political education group she co-founded in January 2009 in part to energize Tea Party activists), or AIPAC, or the other front groups for Israel, Zionism and American corporate militarism, the oligarchs and thieves who have robbed the American people blind can sit back and laugh themselves all the way to the bank.

The U.S does have its own apologists and spokespeople; i.e., those who are responsible for keeping the belligerent determined face on America. Susan Rice looked like a fool screaming her defiance toward Iran, Russia and China at the U.N., passing resolution after resolution, each more transparent than the next while trying to look credible and aggressive. Clinton continues her unbelievable tirades trying to pretend that we are outsourcing “American democracy” throughout the world. Both are as ridiculous as Khrushchev, pounding his shoe on the table at the U.N. General Assembly on October 12, 1960.

As the President travels throughout the country, seeking money from the unidentified rich, and carrying out the only campaign promise he will ever keep, namely, to raise a billion dollars to ensure his own reelection, the American people watch docilely, as the last vestiges of democracy in this country are torn asunder; yet, we need not feel isolated or abandoned — the rich have an alphabet soup full of “independent” thinkers and countries standing by, on call, to assure us that world opinion is on our side. Whatever their title, you can be sure these forces are loyal to, and on the payroll of, the U.S. ruling class.

Luke Hiken is an attorney who has engaged in the practice of criminal, military, immigration, and appellate law. Marti Hiken is the director of Progressive Avenues. She is the former associate director of the Institute for Public Accuracy and former chair of the National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force. Read other articles by Marti Hiken and Luke Hiken, or visit Marti Hiken and Luke Hiken’s website.

~~  Marti Hiken and Luke Hiken ~~

Sunday, February 26, 2012

G-FYI™: Gilmer County Circuit Court - Hearing Set for Monday on FOIA Lawsuit

Update - 02.26.12:

Related Document 1

Related Document 2

Related Document 3

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During a special meeting last month, the Gilmer County Commission released the details of settlement in the third-party lawsuit Summit Community Bank filed in federal court against the Clerk’s Office for improperly recording lien information on properties in the Rivers’ View Subdivision.

Through its insurance company, the commission paid Summit $40,000.

The details came a month after Lawrence J. Smith, a contributor with The West Virginia Record in Charleston, filed a lawsuit here in Gilmer County to compel its release.

During its regularly scheduled meeting on January 10, 2012, the Gilmer County Commission agreed with the recommendation of Prosecutor Gerry Hough to settle Smith’s suit, then sue him for frivolously filing it.

During the meeting, Hough said, “It is necessary to do this because we cannot allow the press to make the county look bad.“

The Commission and Jean Butcher, the County Clerk made good on their threat by including a counterclaim in their answer to Smith’s FOIA lawsuit.

In their counterclaim, they asked sanctions be levied against Smith “in the amount of court costs and attorney fees, and any other sanctions it deems fit and proper.“

A hearing on the commission’s and Butcher’s motion for sanctions is scheduled for tomorrow Monday February 27, 2012 at 11:45 AM before Judge Richard Facemire.

Since the courtroom will be open to the public during this hearing, we hope you will attend to see the fate of open government, and freedom of the press in Gilmer County.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

G-Comm™: Silencing The Critics

In 2010 the FBI invaded the homes of peace activists in several states and seized personal possessions in what the FBI—the lead orchestrator of fake “terrorist plots”—called an investigation of “activities concerning the material support of terrorism.”

Subpoenas were issued to compel antiwar protestors to testify before grand juries as prosecutors set about building their case that opposing Washington’s wars of aggression constitutes giving aid and comfort to terrorists.  The purpose of the raids and grand jury subpoenas was to chill the anti-war movement into inaction.

Last week in one fell swoop the last two remaining critics of Washington/Tel Aviv imperialism were removed from the mainstream media. Judge Napolitano’s popular program, Freedom Watch, was cancelled by Fox TV, and Pat Buchanan was fired by MSNBC.  Both pundits had wide followings and were appreciated for speaking frankly. 

Many suspect that the Israel Lobby used its clout with TV advertisers to silence critics of the Israeli government’s efforts to lead Washington to war with Iran.  Regardless, the point before us is that the voice of the mainstream media is now uniform. Americans hear one voice, one message, and the message is propaganda.  Dissent is tolerated only on such issues as to whether employer-paid health benefits should pay for contraceptive devices. Constitutional rights have been replaced with rights to free condoms.

The western media demonizes those at whom Washington points a finger. The lies pour forth to justify Washington’s naked aggression:  the Taliban are conflated with al Qaeda, Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction, Gaddafi is a terrorist and, even worse, fortified his troops with Viagra in order to commit mass rape against Libyan women.

President Obama and members of Congress along with Tel Aviv continue to assert that Iran is making a nuclear weapon despite public contradiction by the US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and the CIA’s National Intelligence Estimate.  According to news reports, Pentagon chief Leon Panetta told members of the House of Representatives on February 16 that “Tehran has not made a decision to proceed with developing a nuclear weapon.” www.denverpost.com/nationworld/ci_19978801?source=rss.  However, in Washington facts don’t count.  Only the material interests of powerful interest groups matter.

At the moment the American Ministry of Truth is splitting its time between lying about Iran and lying about Syria. Recently, there were some explosions in far away Thailand, and the explosions were blamed on Iran.  Last October the FBI announced that the bureau had uncovered an Iranian plot to pay a used car salesman to hire a Mexican drug gang to kill the Saudi Ambassador to the US. The White House idiot professed to believe the unbelievable plot and declared that he had “strong evidence,” but no evidence was ever released. The purpose for announcing the non-existent plot was to justify Obama’s sanctions, which amount to an embargo—an act of war—against Iran for developing nuclear energy. 

As a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty, Iran has the right to develop nuclear energy. IAEA inspectors are permanently in Iran and report no diversion of nuclear material to a weapons program.

In other words, according to the reports of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the US National Intelligence Estimate, and the current Secretary of Defense, there is no evidence that Iran has nukes or is making nukes.  Yet, Obama has placed illegal sanctions on Iran and continues to threaten Iran with military attack on the basis of an accusation that is contradicted by all known evidence.

How can such a thing happen? It can happen because there is no Helen Thomas, who also was eliminated by the Israel Lobby, to question, as a member of the White House press, President Obama why he placed war-like sanctions on Iran when his own CIA and his own Secretary of Defense, along with the IAEA, report that there is no basis for the sanctions. 

The idea that the US is a democracy when it most definitely does not have a free watchdog press is laughable.  But the media is not laughing.  It is lying.  Just like the government, every time the US mainstream media opens its mouth or writes one word, it is lying. Indeed, its corporate masters pay its employees to tell lies. That is their job. Tell the truth, and you are history like Buchanan and Napolitano and Helen Thomas.

What the Ministry of Truth calls “peaceful protesters brutalized by Assad’s military” are in fact rebels armed and financed by Washington.  Washington has fomented a civil war. Washington claims its intention is to rescue the oppressed and abused Syrian people from Assad, just as Washington rescued the oppressed and abused Libyan people from Gaddafi. Today “liberated” Libya is a shell of its former self terrorized by clashing militias. Thanks to Obama, another country has been destroyed.

Reports of atrocities committed against Syrian civilians by the military could be true, but the reports come from the rebels who desire Western intervention to put them into power. Moreover, how would these civilian casualties differ from the ones inflicted on Bahraini civilians by the US supported Bahraini government, the military of which was fortified by Saudi Arabian troops? There is no outcry in the western press about Washington’s blind eye to civilian atrocities committed by its puppet states.

How do the Syrian atrocities, if they are real, differ from Washington’s atrocities in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Yemen, Libya, Somalia, Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo prison, and secret CIA prison sites?  Why is the american Ministry of Truth silent about these massive, unprecedented, violations of human rights?

Remember also the reports of Serbian atrocities in Kosovo that Washington and Germany used to justify NATO and US bombing of Serbian civilians, including the Chinese consulate, dismissed as another collateral damage.  Now 13 years later, a prominent German TV program has revealed that the photographs that ignited the atrocity campaign were grossly misrepresented and were not photographs of atrocities committed by Serbs, but of Albanian separatists killed in a firefight between armed Albanians and Serbians. Serbian casualties were not shown.  www.freenations.freeuk.com/news-2012-02-19.html. 

The problem that truth faces is that the western media continually lies. On the rare instances when the lies are corrected, it is always long after the event and, therefore, the crimes enabled by the media have been accomplished.

Washington set its puppet Arab League upon Syria in order to establish Syria’s isolation among its own kind, the better to attack Syria. Assad forestalled Washington’s set-up of Syria for destruction by calling a nationwide referendum on February 26 to establish a new constitution that would extend the prospect of rule beyond the Ba’athists (Assad’s party).

One might think that, if Washington and its Ministry of Truth really wanted democracy in Syria, Washington would get behind this gesture of good will by the ruling party and endorse the referendum.  But Washington does not want a democratic Syrian government.  Washington wants a puppet state.  Washington’s response is that the dastardly Assad has outwitted Washington by taking steps toward Syrian democracy before Washington can obliterate Syria and install a puppet.

Here is Obama’s response to Assad’s move toward democracy: “It’s actually quite laughable—it makes a mockery of the Syrian revolution,” White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters aboard Air Force One.

Obama, the neoconservatives, and Tel Aviv are really ######. If Washington and Tel Aviv can figure out how to get around Russia and China and overthrow Assad, Washington and Tel Aviv will put Assad on trial as a war criminal for proposing a democratic referendum.

Assad was an eye doctor in England until his father died, and he was called back to head the troubled government. Washington and Tel Aviv have demonized Assad for refusing to be their puppet.  Another sore point is the Russian naval base at Tartus. Washington is desperate to evict the Russians from their only Mediterranean base in order to make the Mediterranean an american lake. Washington, inculcated with neocon visions of world empire, wants its own mare nostrum.

If the Soviet Union were still extant, Washington’s designs on Tartus would be suicidal.  However, Russia is politically and militarily weaker than the Soviet Union. Washington has infiltrated Russia with NGOs that work against Russia’s interests and will disrupt the upcoming elections. Moreover, Washington-funded “color revolutions” have turned former constituent parts of the Soviet Union into Washington’s puppet states. Shorn of communist ideology, Washington does not expect Russia to push the nuclear button. Thus, Russia is there for the taking. 

China is a more difficult problem.  Washington’s plan is to cut China off from independent sources of energy.  China’s oil investment in eastern Libya is the reason Gaddafi was overthrown, and oil is one of the main reasons that Washington has targeted Iran. China has large oil investments in Iran and gets 20% of its oil from Iran. Closing down Iran, or converting it into Washington’s puppet state, closes down 20% of the Chinese economy.

Russia and China are slow learners. However, when Washington and its NATO puppets abused the “no-fly” UN resolution concerning Libya and violated the UN resolution by turning it into armed military aggression against Libya’s armed forces, which had every right to put down a CIA sponsored rebellion, Russia and China finally got the message that Washington could not be trusted. 

This time Russia and China did not fall into Washington’s trap. They vetoed the UN Security Council’s set-up of Syria for military attack.  Now Washington and Tel Aviv (it is not always clear which is the puppet and which is the puppet master) have to decide whether to proceed in the face of Russian and Chinese opposition. 

The risks for Washington have multiplied. If Washington proceeds, the information that is conveyed to Russia and China is that they are next in line after Iran. Therefore, Russia and China, both being well-armed with nuclear weapons, are likely to put their foot down more firmly at the line drawn over Iran. If the crazed warmongers in Washington and Tel Aviv, with veins running strong with hubris and arrogance, again override Russian and Chinese opposition, the risk of a dangerous confrontation rises.

Why isn’t the american media raising questions about these risks?  Is it worth blowing up the world in order to stop Iran from having a nuclear energy program or even a nuclear weapon?  Does Washington think China is unaware that Washington is taking aim at its energy supply? Does Washington think Russia is unaware that it is being encircled by hostile military bases?

Whose interests are being served by Washington’s endless and multi-trillion dollar wars?  Certainly not the interests of the 50 million americans with no access to health care, nor by the 1,500,000 american children who are homeless, living in cars, rundown motel rooms, tent cities, and the storm sewers under Las Vegas, while huge amounts of public funds are used to bail out banks and squandered in wars of hegemony.

The US has no independent print and TV media. It has presstitutes who are paid for the lies that they tell. The US government in its pursuit of its immoral aims has attained the status of the most corrupt government in human history. Yet Obama speaks as if Washington is the font of human morality.

The US government does not represent americans. It represents a few special interests and a foreign power.  US citizens simply don’t count, and certainly Afghans, Iraqis, Libyans, Somalians, Yemenis, and Pakistanis don’t count.  Washington regards truth, justice, and mercy as laughable values.  Money, power, hegemony are all that count for Washington, the city upon the hill, the light unto nations, the example for the world.

~~  Dr. Paul Craig Roberts ~~