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The story goes that Warren Buffet, rather worried about his investments early 2008, wanted to talk to God… God told him to use his phone and he’d send him the bill… He got and paid the $333 million dollar charge. His investments flourished, too… That would be the end of the story, except he was down in Sussex County recently, following up first hand on a corporate case being processed out of Georgetown… once again, he asked God for the right to call, and agreed to accept the charges… When he got his bill, he was fuming… He was only charged 25 cents… “God”, he said, “you ripped me off on that first call, big time!”… God said, “Warren, don’t you get it? In Sussex County, that’s a local call…”
Local call or not, Sussex County is weighing in on whether to say a prayer before County meetings or to not… Here are a few takes on that policy: one, two, three, four……
As someone who grew up where prayers were always said before football games and county meetings, it isn’t a big deal…… That is, as long as everyone agrees it isn’t a big deal. You don’t see prayers before meetings conducted in New York.
Not because New Yorkers are heathens, but because in New York, you have a multiplicity of religions, so praying a prayer from one of them, is a slap in the face for all others…
Why it’s even an issue in Sussex County is because the Positive Growth Alliance, has been building condo’s like ants, and lots of people who did not grow up in Sussex County, now live there. Many have different ideas of religion than those who’ve always been there all their lives…
If everyone believe in the same version of God as does David Anderson, then of course, duh, why are we even arguing about it… Of course we’re going to pray to God to guide us through this meeting.. That’s what He’s for!
Suddenly, thanks to Rich Collins and the Positive Growth Alliance, we have tons of people who do object to having David Anderson’s version of God, one who dislikes Homosexuals, and one who casts pox on Democrats, one who believes married people should have sex only when they have children, one who believes sex between animals is immoral, one who believes taxes are caused by the devil, one who believes that nature was made to bulldoze and pave with a combination of petroleum and gravel. … one who believes that oil companies have the divine right to pollute oceans, one who believes that animals were made for us to kill. … one who believes a national religious holiday should fall on the first day of deer season.. one who believes pick up trucks and baseball caps are proof that homosexuality is a sin,… on who believes killing someone with a gun is not a sin, but taking that gun away for the safety of others is…
(yes, I’m having fun and talking tongue in cheek)…
The point I’m making is that Sussex County is changing; and it is changing mostly thanks to Rich Collins and the Positive Growth Alliance.
Can you make new citizens join the current religion? If so, then by all means, just like the days of old, they will see no qualms in having a tiny prayer before the meeting.
But if they don’t want to join that religion, then, to force one group of religious people to impose their prayers on others, is not American…In fact, it’s kinda creepy…
If in an effort to show fairness, the Sussex County decided they would do prayers from all religions in alphabetical order, when they came to “B” and hit Buddahism, giving an Buddahist prayer before the session, most of those in the audience would be saying WTF! This is our nation, why do we have to listen to such crap…
Which is… exactly what those Buddahists think, who have opened a business in Millsboro, and have come before the county to ask for a variance on something or other that is in their antiqued code….
So… If it is unnatural for a Baptist to suffer a Buddahist prayer, it is equally unnatural for a Buddahist to sit through a Baptist prayer…
It’s not about one religion being right and the other wrong. It’s about who the citizens are that make up Sussex County. If you want to blame anyone over this controversy, the blame solely lies with those who built up Sussex County and brought in all these new people to begin with… Now that they are here, we have to make Sussex County as fair to them as New York, is fair to us, when we take our business up there……
Positive Growth, huh? Depends on your version of positive I guess………….
If the following statement is true,
“Choose your enemies carefully, for they will define you”
then no matter how much I protest: I am defined by Thurman Adams.
Often those who fought against the will of the one passing, are banned from that person’s parting rites, as well they should be. However, it is those very ones who are one’s adversary, who like two snipers dueling across no-mans land, probably know best how the other person thinks…
Thurman did provided us OOGA people an attractive lighting rod because of his opposition of open government. His use of his desk drawer to table legislation that would have otherwise passed, made him the stuff from which legends are spawned. He provided us both the symbol and the actual visual of someone stuffing bills into a drawer and never pulling them out again. …. a visual which I used over and over again unmercifully against him. He got clobbered with it, excessively.
But I have learned over time that one must separate the man himself, … from what he does. As is common, amateurs tend to get angry at each other… High school kids on opposite benches fill the playing fields with arms flailing when tensions get too high..
However professionals know that their opponents like themselves, also have a duty to their owners. They have the duty to fight for their team’s side just as hard as you would fight for your team’s side…. Real seasoned professionals understand that the teams can change their players, but the actual person playing inside the suit, will always, always remain the same. And that … when the game is finally over, it’s best to shake hands, drop the game face, and give each other sporty man-hugs.
Thurman Adams was actually an amazing man. Even In this democracy he was able to assemble out of a crowd of legislators who were too chicken to challenge him, .. a block of votes that would kill legislation of which he did not approve… Very little could be passed without his blessing. And to be honest, sometimes on the most frustrating of days, I too wish I had that much power at my disposal….
If you think what he did is easy to accomplish: try it. I have and even though I’m a young jedi, I sit in awe of how easy Thurman made it look…..
But what I want to comment most is his resolve and deep seated beliefs on homosexuality. I respect his view point. To be clear it is different from mine, and I spared no bullets in bringing that to light everywhere in our state’s public opinion…. But also a little like me, Thurman felt he was fighting God’s war and that he, as one of God’s soldiers, had to pull all stops to minimize the spread of something his deep set beliefs told him was very wrong…
At one point in my life I would have honored him as a hero for doing so… but events showed that similar to Governor George Wallace of Alabama, Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, Ernest Hollins from South Carolina, Trent Lott from Mississippi all of which came to realize that some of their views were morally antithetical to the constitutional principles they were sworn to uphold… i too was given insight into realizing that certain people should not be disrespected for things they cannot change….
Adams apparently didn’t see that billboard alongside of the political highway.
And his steadfast refusal to open the desk drawer and put the open government bill on the table, was primarily rooted out of his distaste for homosexual unions. For if all sessions were open, this bill would be voted into law simply because not enough votes would be be willing to stand up against it and say no….
But one part of the Adams legend is worth hearing again. And that is his propensity for keeping his word… I can’t even do that. I hope one day to learn…. lol
But Adams accomplished one of the most difficult pieces of human engineering. He “almost” always kept his word…
It is sad but fitting that his passing marks the end of an era. I can still remember the blogger’s comment deriding Adams for not being present when one of the important votes were taken. Someone said he called in sick.. We now know it was true. He was sick, very much so.
It is interesting that these two events happened at the same time. Those positions languishing as bills in the drawer for years, finally slipped out and became law…
The symbolism is not lost upon us that once escaped, the old man felt hanging on was no longer necessary…
So I wish the family of Thurman Adams well, I pray for their loss for it has bothered me considerably as well… The world, my world, is quite empty without him…. Now I have to struggle to find a center, a core upon which to focus…
I have heard comments that so very few people are saying much good about Thurman Adams and some are interpreting that to mean he had few friends.
Well, I am one of those who will praise him.. Studying him in order to anticipate his counter strikes, has made him into someone I most deeply respect. He was able to surprised me multiple times (which is hard to do) and each of those times of being caught off guard, impressed me with his ability to scramble.
His tactics became my tactics.
In a sense, he was very little different from myself… Very little. His only sin was relatively minor: he just was on the other side.
So Thurman Adams, may you rest in peace. May the state and area you loved so much, always come to honor you..
Sleep well, my former foe. Sleep well.
Mike Matthews has carried the ball for the entire state once more… A sincere thank you.
Thanks to Rick Bayard, our state deficit will be $55 million more in the hole. Here is the list of those legislators who put the interests of their friends, the lobbyists, above and beyond the interests of the regular people working in our state… Ironically some of the biggest critics of the 8% rollback of wages, also voted against obtaining $55 million dollars worth of revenue which could have assisted and possibly prevented some of those roll backs.
Ramone N
Kovach N
Bennett X
Blakey N
Booth N
D. Short N
Carey N
Carson N
Cathcart N
Hocker N
Jaques X
Lee N
Manolakos N
Oberle C
Outten N
Thornburg N
Walls N
Wilson N
Each one of the “No’s ” voted to kill the bill strictly because the Racino owners wanted even more money from the commissions off of sports betting, than the bill would give them….
These legislators listed above, believe wealthy race owners deserved millions of dollars more than those hard working Delawareans who will now have to make up the difference in increased taxes and fees… the cost of $110 extra dollars for every working Delawarean… Just so Racino owners can make an additional $55 million over the millions they make already.
It is a travesty when members of certain party do not have the state’s interest at heart, and prefer to take care of lobbyists than either you or me..
This is what they did, and that: is who they are….
And I thought yesterday’s trifecta was big… Partly because of trying to encapsulate yesterdays perfect storm of big issues all playing at once, I paid less attention to the one coming up in just a few moments….
That is the necessary vote on SB 59.…
SB 59 simply states that instead of adhering to those cheap ass building codes recommended by profiteering developers themeselves, the new code will be based on energy efficiency requirements listed by the Federal Governnment.
These guidelines will save each homeowner lots of money. Money developers wish was coming to them…
They are in the process of old boying the Senate in an effort to kill this piece of legislation…. But there is a catch….
This piece of legislation is a requirement if the state of Delaware is to receive any Federal Stimulus funding for this year… Currently we are expecting roughtly $155 million of our $780 million dollar deficit to be covered by the Federal Stimulus Package. Not passing this bill means that additional fees must be levied somewhere else.
I recommend taking that short fall from Rich Collins and other members of the Positive Growth Alliance.
Here is what is at stake.
These guys (developers) make way too much money.
The state has way to little money..
The state’s homeowners have way to little money.
The “not” voting for passage of this bill by any legislator will prove beyond all doubt, which Legislator is serving only for his own self interests, and which is truly there to serve the public……
For there is no way in hell, a no vote on this bill, helps the public out by one iota.
Sussex Green drops a bombshell…
Despite what Meatball says, there is something sick in Sussex County and it rhymes with taker….
Here in essence is the argument for open government… This type of stuff goes on all the time and those of us jaded by its constant misuse, forget that is really antithetic to representative government… Which is why we need citizen watchdogs… and Sussex County has one now….
This must be read… Not only by residents of Sussex County who have to put up with the antics of a family who thinks they can rule with impunity, but by every man, women, and child of the future, so they know exactly how these things are done, and can intercept their implementation before similar actions are finalized.
Here are several examples of the travesty those communists who represent the fine folks of Sussex County have levied against their own kind….
Instead, the list of parcels and areas being considered for inclusion on the future land use map were presented to the P&Z Commission as Old Business at a meeting on April 30, 2008. The parcels and areas were discussed by the P&Z Commission, approved or rejected, and that was that. There was no public hearing on any of them. Then, when the Comp Plan was finally approved (June 24, 2008) all those amendments, which had been approved at the April 30, 2008 meeting were incorporated into the land use map and became part of the ordinance that authorized the Comp Plan.
The Wilson Baker parcels case illustrates this. Baker got a conditional use (c/u) for the smaller parcel in 2005. He either owned or quickly acquired the larger adjoining parcel of AR-1 soon after being granted the c/u on the smaller parcel. He established a propane, kerosene, and diesel fuel business on the smaller parcel under the c/u requirements. However, he wanted to sell both parcels and that proved a bit too complicated because of the c/u, or so his representative testified at the recent change of zoning hearings before the P&Z Commission and County Council. As a result, he apparently decided that getting both parcels rezoned to heavy industry (HI-1) from their current AR-1 would be the most profitable option.
The P&Z Commission scheduled the Wilson Baker parcels for the June 18, 2008 meeting under the agenda heading “Additional Old Business”. The one item under that heading is “Comprehensive Land Use Plan”. The minutes state that Mr. Lank “advised the Commission that a request had been received for inclusion into the Town Center Area around the Town of Milton; that the request came from Baker Petroleum of Wilson Baker, Inc. for the inclusion of their properties; that they are intending to apply for industrial zoning and to create a railroad spur for access to rail service; that the site has been reviewed through the PLUS process” (P&Z Commission Minutes, June 18, 2008, Page 8). The P&Z Commission decided to incorporate the request of Baker Petroleum into the Future Land Use Map by consensus. There was no public hearing
.
On June 24, 2008, the County Council voted to adopt the ordinance establishing the 2007 Comp Plan Update, with amendments. There was no public hearing
.
The entire sketch of how this parcel was rezoned was not done in secret.. It is available on reruns of the Dukes of Hazard television series that was shot during the 1980s.. The faces may look a little different, but the characters who play them are the same…….
El Somnambulo on Delaware Liberal announces that Bob Venables and others are preparing to propose a Marriage Protection Act: SB 27… This will limit marriage to a relationship between a man and a women..
Once again, Bob and his group are more worried about protecting their own assholes, than they are about the needs of their constituents…
Their priorities are ass backwards… When you can show me protection all children abused in heterosexual marriages, when you can show me protection for all women beaten on a regular bases in heterosexual messages, when you can show me a plummeting divorce rate especially in heterosexual marriages, then heterosexual marriage might sound like an institution worthy of protection…
But it until then, in their twisted moralism, they are serving to protect child abuse, wife beating, and painful divorce ….
Living in their cultist enclaves may make them unaware of how the rest of the world lives.. We think it is time they stop worrying about other people’s vaginas and assholes and instead focus ….. on helping people.
lol.
Some of us old timers have been celebrating the second Tuesday of January for what seems like quite a few years… Each year we see signs that Open Government will come to our General Assembly. Last year was the greatest.. Complete with a living autographed open body, fluorescent green tee shirts, and Robert Venebles praying for the souls of those wanting to hold public officials accountable, surely with such a circus atmosphere just before election we would finally see results…..
It never left the drawer.
Fun and games won’t get it done.
What will?
You.
A public who demands that open government is passed; a public who dogs those royalists intent on keeping our hands away from our money, a public who exposes the lies and fallicies of their obfuscations…. WILL PREVAIL IN THE END.
We have to. At some future point they will need our vote.
OK, so that brings up this point which often made by the contractors of our current closed governmental system. If it is inevitable, why the hurry… Why put wrinkles in the current system which seems to work OK as it is now? After all, are their any major problems, serious catastrophies, widespread panics being caused by our current secret General Assembly?
Actually…. yes.
There is a $600,000,000 dollar shortfall; one of the reasons being the lack of open government in those areas that determine where we spend our money… The General Assembly.
In plain terms here is how it goes down.
A handful of legislators decide who gets what money. Those handful are sequestered in a chamber, away from the public’s eye, but freely visited every day by lobbyists for various interests. Many offer gifts. They have access, but someone wishing to get a safety device installed on school buses to protect our children, has to go through loops, tunnels, push bells and whistles, just to get enough points to be heard….
Open government is just a way to balance it out more… There are two ways to balance it out… One is to get rid of lobbyists entirely… then there is nobody in that chamber… The easier way is to open of those sessions so anyone can see what is going on… There is a reason shady deals are not done in the open… people will know about them.. So if we open those arrangements, we can hear when a lobbyist says he will provide tickets to the Netherlands to study wind farming.
And when they come back from that trip spouting only the corporate philosophy of that business that gave them the tickets…. we can say now wait a minute… You were “rickrolled“. What about the other argument?
In tight times there is nothing wrong with looking hard at ones budget…. Making hard choices is what we do… ie should we spend this little bit of money on our roads, or on our schools. Each makes the best argument in their favor, and then someone…. has to decide. That’s it. That is how it is done..
What is wrong, and why legislators such as Senator Thurman Adams, Senator Tony DeLuca, Senator Patty Blevins, and Senator Harris McDowell want open government to go away, is that without anyone looking over their shoulder, instead of going to a road or a school, that money now goes to a developer who has property he can’t unload for a profit to anyone except to the state….
And we hear: “the state has invested “so many” dollars to preserve open space containing so many acres so that future Delawareans can……..”
We don’t ever learn that a school was not built, a road was not repaired, 150 jobs were cut, just to make that sweetheart deal happen…
Here is real fact: choke on this.
In the development of the Wilmington Waterfront, those developers were given carte-blanche legal protection…
Accordingly, no legal or equitable action seeking damages for personal injury or death as a result of any operation, condition, service, or program related to the parcels that were the subject of these development agreements shall be permitted, maintained, or recovered against such entities
Or $4,000,000 to redo Garrison Lake Golf Course.
Bottom line is as we try to trim $600,000,000 from our state’s expenses, how much less would we be trimming if during the past 8 years we had not invested in various governmental officials pet projects?
Quite a lot.
As a result, our children will learn in shoddy schools, potholes will tear off our oil pans, our police forces and teachers numbers will be diminished….. all because someone was “hooked up” in an earlier closed session committee that decided where and how our public money will be spent…
As was emphatically said by our new Speaker of the House….” Damn it; its the public’s money!” then it stands to reason that the public be part of deciding how that money is spent…..
We did it with Bluewater Wind… Our duty as citizens of this state demand we do it again…
We are at a point where almost everyone in Delaware is in favor of Open Government.. It is an issue that crosses party lines…
Those few who do not, are all in the Senate. That is why we need to take our fight there. Within that chamber are the ones who need to band together to vote with at least 11 votes to do away with the desk drawer veto. From this group of twenty one, 11 need to agree that if any of their coalition is threatened or denied his right to bring his bill on the floor, because he dared to stand up to Adams on open government, that irregardless of party loyalty, the other ten will stand behind them and override Senator Adams and bring that bill on the floor of a vote.. It will need to be bipartisan, which is why it will need all of us to apply the political muscle….
As per our drill with Bluewater Wind, here are the numbers…..
Senate Democrats
Dover: 302-744-4165
Wilmington: 302-577-8542
Senate Republicans
Dover: 302-744-4134
Wilmington: 302-577-8517
And for good measure:
House Republicans
Receptionist: (302) 744-4171
FAX: Dover (302) 739-2773
Wilm. (302) 577-6396
House Democrats
Receptionist: (302) 744-4351
FAX: Dover (302) 739-2313
One might recommend printing up on ones computers business cards with just one number, explaining to ones friends and neighbors the importance of their call, and handing out the numbers enabling a greater number of Delaware’s citizens to become involved with controlling their own destiny.
After all that is why our ancestors fought the revolution. That is why they fought for Lincoln, to keep this nation together. That is why they beat back the Japanese and Germany during WWII, to ensure those freedoms remained at home… That is why Delawareans are in Iraq RIGHT NOW.
They are not there so some very important piece of legislation can get buried in someone’s desk drawer……
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kavips 
