My Opinions & Rants

FW: CURTAIN RODS

2009-04-13T10:17:00.001-04:00

Sent: 2009-04-13 09:58
Subject: CURTAIN RODS

CURTAIN RODS---- PRICELESS You gotta read this!

She spent the first day packing her belongings into boxes, crates and suitcases.

On the second day, she had the movers come and collect her things.

On the third day, she sat down for the last time at their beautiful dining room table by candle-light, put on some soft background music, and feasted on a pound of shrimp, a jar of caviar, and a bottle of spring-water.

When she had finished, she went into each and every room and deposited a few half-eaten shrimp shells dipped in caviar into the hollow of the curtain rods!

She then cleaned up the kitchen and left. When the husband returned with his new girlfriend, all was bliss for the first few days.

Then slowly, the house began to smell.

They tried everything; cleaning, mopping and airing the place out.

Vents were checked for dead rodents and carpets were steam cleaned.

Air fresheners were hung everywhere. Exterminators were brought in to set off gas canisters, during which they had to move out for a few days and in the end they even paid to replace the expensive wool carpeting.

NOTHING WORKED.

People stopped coming over to visit.

Repairmen refused to work in the house.

The maid quit.

Finally, they could not take the stench any longer and decided to move.

A month later, even though they had cut their price in half, they could not find a buyer for their stinky house.

Word got out and eventually even the local realtors refused to return their calls.

Finally, they had to borrow a huge sum of money from the bank to purchase a new place.

The ex-wife called the man and asked how things were going.

He told her the saga of the rotting house. She listened politely and said that she missed her old home terribly and would be willing to reduce her divorce settlement in exchange for getting the house back.

Knowing his ex-wife had no idea how bad the smell was, he agreed on a price that was about 1/10th of what the house had been worth, but only if she were to sign the papers that very day.

She agreed and within the hour his lawyers delivered the paperwork.

A week later the man and his girlfriend stood smiling as they watched the moving company pack everything to take to their new home...

And to spite the ex-wife, they even took the curtain rods.

I LOVE A HAPPY ENDING, DON'T YOU?

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Where is Rip Hamilton when you need him?

2009-01-28T14:23:00.001-05:00

So the city of Coatesville is under siege by an unknown group of terrorists, yes I said terrorists because that is exactly what they are. You don't have to be of middle eastern descent or on a holy war to be a terrorist. These terrorists have set at least 20 fires in Coatesville this year alone, yep 20 fires in 30 days! This past weekend most of a city block was lost to an arson fire. The city has declared a state of emergency, Federal agencies have been brought in along with resources from the state. The city and the citizens crime commission have posted money for a reward but so far nobody else has stepped up. Rip comes back every year and gives a block party and every time he's interviewed he says he's from Coatesville but he's been conspicuously absent during this crisis. I really think that the city could use a boost from it's favorite player not necessarily monetarily although that might help people to come forward with information, but just a short appearance to appeal to the community at large to help out and bring this chapter to a close before it gets even worse.

Check out http://www3.allaroundphilly.com/DLN/cvsoe/index.html for more info.

A New Messiah or A New Political Hack?

2009-01-20T14:33:00.001-05:00

I am so sick of all of the people who seem to think that President Obama is the New Messiah and will magically turn things around. Is this how he won the election, is it because so many people are unable to think and reason for themselves and believe any and everything that they hear on TV or read on the internet? Have we become a nation of sheep? Where have the true patriots gone?

President Obama is my Commander & Chief and I will obey any lawful order given by him or those appointed by him and while I didn't vote for him I will support him because he is the president and respect him for what he has risked to take this job. I certainly hope that he will do wonderful things and help get our country back on the path it should be on. We have gone astray and need some serious leadership to get us back were we belong. However...... if anyone thinks that those changes will happen overnight or even in his first term they are delusional at best and just plain nuts at worst. The changes that need to take place in this country will not happen overnight nor will they happen just because the new President says so. Things will take time and given this crisis didn't just start last week it will take a long time to correct it. Things will most likely get worse before they will start to get better, more people will lose their jobs, their homes, and in some cases their lives as we work through these trying times. It will not be fun and games, those days have run their course and now we must suck it up and pay for the fun we had. What we have done is no different then binge spending on a credit card, it's a blast while you are doing it but all too fast you reach your credit limit and the bank wants you to start paying for all that fun you had. In my opinion that is where most of us are in this country. The banks and others were very liberal with their money lending and many of us got way more credit then we ever should have, now all of a sudden the money isn't there anymore and things have turned sour. Of course this has an effect on everyone and ends up as a vicious cycle of financial crisis, consumers are over extended so they can't spend anymore like they were, they just keep up with the necessities of life and don't spend on the fun things as much. Because of this many companies who were betting on all that consumer spending are having troubles, this causes the banks to lose money on the interest as people stop borrowing as much money, which in turn causes companies to close or cut back which results in job loss. This of course adds to the current lack of consumer spending because fewer consumers have money to spend, this causes the same effect as before all over again.

Our country will get through this crisis and any other crisis that comes our way, not because we have elected a certain person as our president or because we have democrats or republicans in charge. We will get through this because we are the greatest nation in the world with some of the toughest and most resilient people on earth. We will help each other and will do whatever it takes to fix our situation, not because one man or a group of men and women say we should but because that is our nature as human beings and as citizens of this great country.

So, Good Luck President Obama, as a military man I stand ready to carry out any orders you give and to do whatever is necessary to protect my country and her people from those who will do us harm. As I have sworn I will defend the Constitution of the United States, and protect her from all enemies foreign and domestic. So Solider On my friends and remember even if you didn't vote for him you still have to respect the office that he holds.

To those who feel that George Bush is at fault for everything that is wrong with this country I say this; "Get a Clue and read a little history." This crisis has been building for a long time and now it's time to pay the piper.

For my regular readers check me out on facebook.

Hero's Laid to Rest

2009-01-05T13:49:00.000-05:00

Two Heros were laid to rest today.

Major/Dr John Pryor

http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20090105_Hundreds_of_mourners_for_Penn_doctor_killed_in_Iraq.html

FF Michelle Smith

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20090105/NEWS/90105019

America Loses Another Hero

2008-12-23T08:18:00.001-05:00

Another Hero was lost yesterday. Volunteer FF Michelle Smith of the Delaware City DE FD succumbed to injuries she received while operating at a motor vehicle accident Sat (12/20) evening on Rt 13 in Wilmington Manor DE. Smith was the driver of the DE City ambulance that evening working a standby assignment for the Wilmington Manor FD who was having a company function. While assisting with paitent care of a motocyclist who had lost control of his bike on Rt 13, both Smith & the victim Edward Reiss were struck by a BMW driven by Joseph Taye of Bear DE.

FF Smith was a very active member of the Delaware City FD, serving as a firefighter, the secretary of the Ladies Auxilary, and as an ambulance driver. She was also active with the companies fire prevention program and received the Edward McCormack Award from the DE State Fire Prevention Commission for her excellence in fire prevention education. FF Smith is survived by a 12 year old daughter. Any time of year is difficult to lose a hero such as this but at the holiday season it is even more devestating especially for her 12 year old daughter. Please take a moment to remember her and all of Michelle's family and friends in your prayers.

Rest Easy Sister, your brothers and sisters of the fire service will do everything they can for your daughter. You will never be forgotten.

More info at http://www.dcfc15.com

DE LODD Arrest

2008-12-23T07:50:00.001-05:00

Just an update, they arrested the POS that killed FF Smith. Hopefully justice will be served and this waste of air will not be free for many years. Be Safe. - Chuck

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20081223/NEWS01/812230351

RIP EMT Michelle Smith

2008-12-22T13:39:00.001-05:00

Rest In Peace Michelle. You gave your life helping another and that is by far the greatest thing a person can do.

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20081222/NEWS/81222025

Vietnam Survivor Killed in Philly!

2008-11-12T07:39:00.001-05:00

These people are animals should be executed on sight.
Survived Vietnam, only to die here
Man killed, wife raped in Upper Darby 'blitz'
By STEPHANIE FARR
Philadelphia Daily News
farrs@phillynews.com 215-854-4225
Hoa Pham, once a decorated second lieutenant in the South Vietnamese Army, survived seven years as a prisoner in North Vietnam after the fall of Saigon.

But Pham, 60, didn't survive two hours as a prisoner in his own "house of horrors" Monday night, after a robber broke into his Upper Darby home and conducted a "blitz" assault on Pham and his 58-year-old wife, according to police.

"To spend seven years in a North Vietnamese prison camp and then to come here and reach this kind of ending . . . it's a sad commentary," Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood said.

Pham's wife, whose name is being withheld by the Daily News, was brutally beaten and repeatedly sexually assaulted, but survived the attack and remained in critical but stable condition at Delaware County Memorial Hospital.

As of yesterday, her family had yet to tell her that she would never see her husband again.
"She doesn't know about my dad yet," said Son Pham, the couple's 22-year-old son. "She's pretty weak right now, and we're scared it might shock her."

The "sadistic and brutal" attack began about 8:15 p.m., when a man broke into the couple's home on Copley Road near Sansom Street while they were asleep upstairs, Chitwood said.

The assailant beat the couple and demanded money from them, police said, and after they gave him all they had, he demanded more and continued to beat them.

Bound with electrical wires from their own home, the couple was dragged downstairs, where they were stabbed and beaten with objects that police declined to identify.

The assailant sent the wife upstairs to search for more money, but he caught her trying to use her cell phone instead. That's when he sexually assaulted her, Chitwood said.

After holding the Phams hostage for more than an hour, the man fled, leaving Pham bleeding from the head and face on a first-floor porch, where he was pronounced dead at 9:27 p.m.

"Detectives described it as a house of horror. . . . Blood was all over the first and second floors," Chitwood said.
Pham's wife, who suffered stab wounds and significant fractures to her hands, arms, face and head, was able to escape to a relative's home nearby, where she called police, Chitwood said.

Son Pham, the second-youngest of the couple's six children, said that he learned of the attack about 10:30 p.m., when he received an instant message from his sister while he was studying at Temple University, where he's majoring in computer science.

"I went home as quickly as possible," he said in front of his parent's house yesterday. "I've been waiting out here all day and all night to get in."

The couple's rowhouse, where they've lived for 14 years, is across the street from St. Alice's Church, which the family attended every Sunday, said Son Pham, who lives nearby with his brother.

"I lived here for so long, I would never think anything like that would happen," he said.
Son Pham said his family has a lot of support from the predominantly Vietnamese neighborhood. His oldest sister, who lives in Vietnam, also is being surrounded by friends and relatives there, he said.

All five of the Phams' other children reside in Pennsylvania, including a son who is a member of the Naval Reserves, Son Pham said.

Hoa Pham came to America with his oldest son by boat 17 years ago. His wife and five other children joined him two years later, Son Pham said.

For some time, Hoa Pham was employed as a steelworker, but most recently he worked at Alloy Surfaces, in Chester Township, his son said.

Son Pham said that his mother was a homemaker who often baby-sat some of her six grandchildren.
Although police believe that the attack was random, Son Pham thinks his parents had been targeted by someone who knew that they were an older couple alone at the time.

"Right now, I'm not sure of the story myself," he said.
"I just know my dad is not around anymore."
Upper Darby police are offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the killer, who is described only as a muscular man in his late 20s or early 30s, around 6 feet tall. Those with information about the crime are urged to call 610- 734-7677. *

Happy Birthday Marines!

2008-11-10T10:48:00.001-05:00

Interesting, the 1st Marine is buried in a Quaker Cemetery in Philadelphia. Happy Birthday to the Marines!

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20081110_At_dawn_in_Phila___homage_to_the_first_Marine.html

Remembering a Hero

2008-11-02T02:03:00.002-05:00

Last night they remembered a true hero from Philadelphia. He didn't hit the winning run of the series, nor did he make the winning catch. He did something much more important, he gave his life protecting the citizens of Philadelphia from the evil people who would do them harm. Rest Easy Officer Chuck Cassidy, the city is lucky to have fine men and women like you protecting it.

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=6483863

RIP Hoppity Rabbit

2008-10-15T09:09:00.001-04:00

Monday sucked. That's about the best I can put it. While I was away one of our rabbits took a turn for the worse. He had been having some trouble moving around but he went down hill and couldn't use his back legs anymore. So I got back on Sat and Mon morning I called the Vet's office and took him in. We know it was the right thing to do so he isn't suffering but it doesn't make it any easier. Rest in Peace Hoppity.

The Rainbow Bridge

inspired by a Norse legend

By the edge of a woods, at the foot of a hill,
Is a lush, green meadow where time stands still.
Where the friends of man and woman do run,
When their time on earth is over and done.
For here, between this world and the next,
Is a place where each beloved creature finds rest.
On this golden land, they wait and they play,
Till the Rainbow Bridge they cross over one day.
No more do they suffer, in pain or in sadness,
For here they are whole, their lives filled with gladness.
Their limbs are restored, their health renewed,
Their bodies have healed, with strength imbued.
They romp through the grass, without even a care,
Until one day they start, and sniff at the air.
All ears prick forward, eyes dart front and back,
Then all of a sudden, one breaks from the pack.
For just at that instant, their eyes have met;
Together again, both person and pet.
So they run to each other, these friends from long past,
The time of their parting is over at last.
The sadness they felt while they were apart,
Has turned into joy once more in each heart.
They embrace with a love that will last forever,
And then, side-by-side, they cross over... together.
(c) 1998 Steve and Diane Bodofsky. All Rights Reserved

God Speed Paul Newman

2008-09-28T01:24:00.002-04:00

Though I never got the chance to meet Paul. He was many times only 2 doors down on our working class neighborhood in Broomall PA. Our neighbors were very friendly with Paul & his family. Of course being a younster I didn't get an invite to any event which had paul. But from the stories I had heard, Paul was a standup guy who tried and didn;t try and hide mental health

issues no did he shy away from the probloms that go along with the medical conition

Pual would stop to eat at my neighbor's small suburbnn home. Usually it was quick & quiet round wiht 6ual egging on his

Rest Easy Patrick McDonald

2008-09-24T17:32:00.002-04:00

Yesterday the world lost another hero. Officer Patrick McDonald was executed on the streets of Philadelphia. Daniel Giddings, the scumbag who did this was chased down and killed by brother officers. Officer Richard Bowes was wounded during the gunfight with Giddings. Officer McDonald was only on the job for 8 short years however he had already been recruited for the elite Highway Patrol unit. Officer McDonalds father was a retired Captain from the Philadelphia FD.

Daniel Giddings was a career scumbag who was out on patrol after serving 10 years of a 12 year sentence. The gun was purchased in South Carolina by a straw purchaser who bought the gun and illegally sold it. The ATF is questioning this loser and hopefully will make him or her the poster child for straw purchasing and sent them to the federal pen for at least 20 years!

Details on the shooting and funeral arrangements can be found at

6 ABC & at FOP Lodge 5

Condolences can be left at The Officer Down Memorial Page

My prayers go out to the family and friends of Patrick McDonald and Richard Giddings and his family & friends.

9-11-08

2008-09-18T12:22:00.001-04:00

I was traveling on 9-11 but I still did not forget that fateful day in 2001 when so many gave their lives. Actually it was kind of eerie to be flying on that day but I had no choice in the matter. To many around me it seemed like just another day which is truly ashame. We must never forget what happened that day and those who died. It's only been 7 years but to many it must be ancient history to others so it is as vivid as yesterday.

http://www.fdnylodd.com/9-11-Never-Forget/Memorials/Blood-Of-Heroes.html

Murderer on the Loose in Philly!

2008-09-16T08:38:00.000-04:00

Very nice. As we privatize more and more services things like this can't help but happen. My questions is, what are the qualifications of the people transporting him? I am reasonably sure that being private agents they are not authorized to go armed on the aircraft unlike a public servant who is authorized to fly armed. This guy is a convicted murderer, not a traffic offender or something silly like that, he's a serious felon who should have had serious security on him. Kudo's to the state of DE on trying to save money by cutting costs where it shouldn't!

A man sentenced to a life term in Delaware is at large after his escape at Philadelphia International Airport.
The Delaware Department of Correction says 43-year-old Tarriq Ali, also known as Wendell Husser, was being transported from California back to Delaware by a private prisoner transportation service when he escaped.

The department says the escape happened about midnight Friday but department officials weren't informed until Sunday.

A company called Prisoner Transport Services of America had been hired by the state to return Ali to Delaware.

Ali was convicted of attempted murder in Delaware in 1995, but was sent to California under a prisoner exchange agreement.

Bomb Found

2008-09-16T07:13:00.001-04:00

This is getting a little close to home. I am in West Chester often enough that this scares me a bit. - Chuck
Bomb found at West Chester garage was "designed to injure"
By Kathleen Brady Shea
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Authorities are working to determine who placed a "dangerous" bomb outside a well-used, downtown West Chester parking garage, prompting building evacuations and detouring traffic for hours Monday

Local police called in the Montgomery County Bomb Squad, which serves the 5-county area. Montgomery County Sheriff John P. Durante, who heads the unit, said officials determined about 1 p.m. that a suspicious package, which had been found earlier by the parking attendant, was a device "that can maim and cause death."

And John T. Hagenman, an spokesman for the federal bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, which is involved in the investigation, said the bomb was "designed to injure...this was not a device used by someone who was playing around."

Experts successfully detonated the explosive, Durante said. He said the bomb squad would maintain a presence in the area for at least 24 hours as the investigation proceeds.

"Without getting into any specifics - and certainly we don't want to compromise any ongoing investigation - somebody obviously intended ill harm," said West Chester Police Chief Scott L. Bohn. "It certainly was a dangerous device."

Bohn said police were called to the Mosteller garage on Chestnut and Walnut streets at 7:25 a.m. Monday by the garage attendant, who noticed a "suspicious package" outside the west entrance.

Officers who searched the premises found two additional packages inside, prompting the closure of several nearby businesses, including the YMCA, which had to relocate its child day-care center, said Bohn. The additional packages proved to be nonexplosive, he said.

Bohn also said the door to the 24-hour garage's electrical panel, which is normally locked, was open. He said he did not know yet whether the open door was related to the explosive.

Sections of High, Chestnut and Walnut streets were closed most of the day and traffic was detoured around the site until 5:30 p.m. when everything but a stretch of Chestnut by the garage was reopened.

At the same time, as police and ATF agents were still collecting evidence, drivers who had left their vehicles in the garage before it was closed in the morning were allowed to retrieve them. The garage will be open for business as usual Tuesday morning, police said.

Bohn said authorities do not believe the incident resembled the work of the so-called "suburban bomber."
From March 2000 through November 2001, 20 bombs were found along the border of Chester and Montgomery Counties, mainly in the Phoenixville area. No one was hurt, but police have said many of the devices were dangerous and designed to kill. The identity of the bomber, and the motive, remain a mystery.

The site of the discovery is ultimately destined for demolition. Several years ago, the West Chester Borough Council, which owns the garage, voted to replace the 35-year-old structure, which has 414 parking spaces, with a modern, bigger facility, a process that is still in the planning stages.

Heading Home

2008-09-10T17:06:00.004-04:00

We are heading out shortly to return home. We accomplished much and made some great friends. It is with a heavy heart that we return though as it looks like Ike may head this way. Rest assured though there are thousands of other guardsmen waiting to come to the aid of anywhere that Ike comes. I have seen a tremendous outpouring of support down here and it is awesome. This is what we do, we help each other out in a time of need. The national guard (both Army & Air) are fully prepared and fully able to provide any support necessary for whatever disaster, natural or otherwise that hits this country.

Tommorroy is 9/11 and I will be traveling home. Please take a moment to remember those who gave their lives on the fateful day and all those who have given their lives since. Also to all those deployed you are in our prayers. So tommorrow raise a glass to "Absent Companions", drain your glass and put it upside down on the bar.

Check Out - Blackfive for more info on this toast.

Gustav & Ike

2008-09-07T19:35:00.003-04:00

Still here waiting to see what Ike will do. The folks here at the LANG have treated us like kings, the food has been amazing and they appreciate our help. Things down south are pretty bad even though nobody is reporting it.

Special thanks to Miss Linda for keeping the club open every day since the hurricane. The cold beers after a hot busy day were awesome.

More to follow!

GUSTAV

2008-09-05T07:24:00.002-04:00

I am currently in Pineville LA helping our friends at the LA National Guard get back on their feet. The left thinking media isn't reporting much but there is some serious damage in LA, this area isn't real bad but there is some flooding and lots of power problems. I'll report as I can on the situation.

God Speed Robert Hazard

2008-08-07T13:10:00.001-04:00

I grew up listening to the Hooters & Cindi Lauper in the 80's. Robert Hazard & the Hero's played at all the local clubs. I think I may have seen them play at the Borse building in Philly the one day we skipped school and went in for a live radio broadcast of John Debella's Morning Zoo. So I was shocked to read that Robert Hazard died at age 59 Tues night. God Speed Robert, your music made for good times.

http://www.philly.com/philly/obituaries/20080807_Robert_Hazard__Philly_rocker_and_songwriter.html

http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20080807_Philly_rock_legend_Robert_Hazard_dies_at_59.html

Mayor Nutter Kicks Butt!

2008-08-05T08:23:00.000-04:00

I hope Mayor Nutter's statements are not just political grandstanding, I'd like to think that he is a positive change for Philly government. I love his statement where he said if it was his daughter who was treated that way by people who were supposed to protect her he would personally kick their ass! Apparently the policies at Philly's DHS are even more protective of idiots than those of the federal system. Those involved have been suspended with pay which to me seems to be a reward for doing horrible things. I will warn you that the details of this report are not easy to read. I hope that those involved fry for this and I hope her death haunts them for the rest of their lives because what they did was despicable. I hope this sends a message to others who think that they can just show up each day at DHS and screw off. To those who were involved from the top down I just have one thing to comment, "One day you will be old and unable to care for yourself and I certainly hope that you get the same level of care that young Danieal got from you! Rot in Hell you POS!

7 more at DHS suspended
Irate Mayor Nutter: 'I am heartbroken by what has happened'
By WENDY RUDERMAN & CATHERINE LUCEY
Philadelphia Daily News
rudermw@phillynews.com 215-854-2860
Mayor Nutter didn't review Danieal Kelly's death through the lens of a mayor, or as a 25-year public servant.
He was haunted by the girl's death as a dad.
So much so that Nutter's voice quivered and he seemed to fight tears yesterday as he announced more suspensions of DHS workers in connection with the starvation death of Danieal, who had cerebral palsy and whimpered one word - "water" - in the days before her death. The 14-year-old girl wasted away to 42 pounds - the weight of a typical 5-year-old - with bedsores to the bone.

"I read the grand jury report not just as the mayor of this city but also as the father of a daughter," Nutter said.
"It is appalling. It is outrageous. And I am heartbroken by what has happened here."
He added, "I am fully, thoroughly and completely pissed off about what has happened here . . . When I think of my own daughter and if she were in someone else's care and [city workers] performed the way some of these individuals did, I would kick their ass myself."

Alternately sounding sad and angry, Nutter promised that Danieal's death "will not be in vain" and said he will not tolerate lax city employees.

Yesterday, he suspended seven DHS supervisors and top-level administrators, including Ingrid Hawk, Shawn Davis, Janice Walker, Valerie Mond, Martha Poller, Wesley Brown and Pamela Mayo.

All have been suspended with pay, pending an internal investigation into Danieal's death.
Nutter's action brings the total number of DHS suspensions to nine. Two DHS workers - Dana Poindexter and Laura Sommerer - were suspended last week after District Attorney Lynne Abraham filed criminal charges against them.

Those suspended did not return phone calls or declined comment when reached by the Daily News yesterday. Two did not answer their home phones and no answering machine picked up.

In a written statement, Cathy Scott, president of District Council 47 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, also declined to discuss the individual suspensions, citing "the possibility that additional legal and/or personnel actions may be taken."

"Today's DHS is no longer the DHS of two years ago. But the hard work to reform and improve must continue . . . We take our responsibilities to the children very seriously," Scott said.

Paramedics found Danieal's emaciated body on a soiled mattress littered with feces. Her entire back was a gully of maggot-infested bedsores. When paramedics lifted her body, an imprint of her body was left in the mattress. For months, she lay dying in a dark, hot room without food or water. All the while, DHS employees and outside social workers - paid by the city - were supposed to check up on her.

During yesterday's news conference, Nutter praised the "heroes" in DHS who work hard every day to protect the young and vulnerable in the city.

Then Nutter issued a warning to DHS employees who don't measure up: "For the very few, whoever they may be, if this is not the kind of work that you're prepared to do . . . then you should leave this city government right now," Nutter said.

"We don't need you and we don't want you in this government when we have the kind of behaviors that we've seen as a result of this grand jury report."

Nutter said he will be meeting with DHS staff today, to talk about his expectations from staff. He said that every aspect of DHS is under review. In particular, all the cases assigned to Poindexter and Sommerer have been reassigned and are under review and all of Poindexter's cases will receive new investigations, new safety assessments and new home visits, Nutter said.

Last week marked Poindexter's fourth suspension, said the grand jury, which noted that "Poindexter's slovenly, neglectful, and dangerously reckless work habits were not limited to Danieal's case."

Public-interest lawyer Carol Tracy, a member of a DHS oversight panel convened by then-Mayor John Street in 2006, called the suspensions "appropriate." She said the report revealed that DHS failed from the caseworker level to all the way up the chain of command. "It isn't just one failure," Tracy said. Nutter expressed confidence in DHS Commissioner Anne Marie Ambrose, whom he named in June, to carry out needed reforms.

He said there's "no need" for the state to take over DHS, as Abraham called for last week.
When a reporter noted that employees involved in Danieal's case were still in their jobs two years after her death, Nutter said, "They're not in place today." *

Larry Mendte is a Felon!

2008-07-23T20:13:00.004-04:00

As far as I am concerned what Larry Mendte committed several serious felonies and should be locked up for a long time. The current prediction is that he will cop a plea and get 0 to 6 months of federal time. That is a total bunch of crap. He didn't just peek at Alycia Lane's mail, he plotted to do it and installed a program to capture her every key stroke on her computer at the TV station. He then used her stolen (yes stolen) information to read her e-mails, her private e-mails constantly, as many as 11 times a day, which is probably more than Alycia was reading her own mail. What he did was not a minor crime it was serious and it was stalking. He should pay by doing some serious time and the Fed's should use this to send a clear message that in the age of cyberspace that this type of behavior is a serious crime. I say 3 to 5 for old Larry.

Also Channel 3 bears some serious responsibility, as some may know my profession is computer security and to have a lack of administrative controls on their systems is not just stupid it's negligent. Yes this was a sophisticated hardware keylogger the same type used by the FBI but good security practices should have caught this device quickly as any device connected has to interface with the operating system and can be detected, especially with by a company that can pay it's news anchors over 700K a year to read a TV screen and look pretty! So I am sure that Larry will pay dearly in the civil suit as will CBS & Channel 3. With a yearly salary of 780K a year on the line in a civil suit along with a major rising star news anchor's reputation I am sure they can pay for some serious expert witnesses to come into court and show just how neglient the TV station was with their lack of computer security. Plus if I was a source for anyone at that station I'd be dropping out of site quickly knowing that their information was so insecure.

What's your take on all of this? Here's some links

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Surgeon sued for giving anesthetized patient temporary tattoo

2008-07-16T13:11:00.001-04:00

This was stupid and will probably end up being very costly. I have joked about getting my wife a tattoo in the small of her back during one of her sugeries but this guy crossed the line with where he put the tattoo. I don't think she deserves a huge payday out of it but he should be punished. -Chuck

Surgeon sued for giving anesthetized patient temporary tattoo
By Don Sapatkin
Inquirer Staff Writer
In a lawsuit filed yesterday, a Camden County woman accused her orthopedic surgeon of "rubbing a temporary tattoo of a red rose" on her belly while she was under anesthesia.

The patient discovered the tattoo below the panty line the next morning, when her husband was helping her get dressed to go home after the operation for a herniated disc, her attorney, Gregg A. Shivers, said in a phone interview yesterday.

"She was extremely emotionally upset by it," said Shivers. The suit, filed on behalf of Elizabeth Mateo in Camden County Superior Court, seeks punitive and compensatory damages from Steven Kirshner, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon with offices in Marlton and Lumberton, both in Burlington County.

Kirshner does not deny placing the tattoo - and has left washable marks on patients before to improve their spirits, his lawyer, Robert Agre of Haddonfield, said last night. He said none has complained.

"What's offensive about this complaint is that it suggests something he did was intended to be prurient, and nothing could be further from the truth," said Agre. "It was intended just to make the patient feel better."

Nevertheless, said Art Caplan, chairman of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine's Department of Medical Ethics, "you cannot do something like this even as a joke."

"If it's true," said Caplan, whose knowledge of the case was limited to a reporter's summary, "she's got a case."
Caplan recalled news reports of other cases where physicians left an inappropriate mark, such as a football logo, which had a legitimate purpose, such as indicating the placement of an organ for a future cut.

In a highly publicized case in 1999, a doctor in New York City went further by carving his initials into a patient's abdomen after delivering her baby by Caesarean section.

Mateo, the patient from Pennsauken, declined to comment last night.
Shivers, who practices in Cherry Hill, would describe his client only as a clerical worker in her mid-30s with a husband and young children.

Her suit does not criticize the operation's quality and names only the surgeon who performed it at Virtua Memorial Hospital Burlington County on April 28. The health system released a statement saying "the Mateo family has acknowledged that Virtua was in no way responsible for the incident."

In an announcement about the civil action, Shivers said that the hospital had "immediately conducted a diligent and responsible investigation" that found no witnesses. "The patient reports that the hospital has treated her with appropriate respect and professionalism as she has gone through this difficult experience," the statement concluded.

Part of his client's concern, Shivers said, was knowing what took place.
"We're assuming that it would have to have happened after surgery," he said, "because during surgery she would be on her stomach."

In addition to the lawsuit, Shivers said he mailed a related complaint to the New Jersey Board of Medical Examiners yesterday.

The board said it had no record of past actions against Kirshner, and hadn't received the complaint in the mail.
The doctor's attorney, Agre, who had seen neither the board complaint nor the lawsuit, said the doctor had "never been accused of anything."

"Most of the patients are delighted by Dr. Kirshner's sense of humor," he said, adding that the 51-year-old surgeon who lives in Lumberton and did his medical training at Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia is "renowned as a jovial guy and regarded as a doctor who has terrific relations with his patients and with his staff."

"He vigorously denies that any action of his was intended to offend the patient," Agre said, noting that the marks the surgeon has left on his patients "are like children's tattoos. Kids put them on themselves and they wash right off."

Frank Farley, a psychologist at Temple University who was read a summary of the lawsuit, speculated about why a surgeon who had performed an operation on the back would leave a red rose on his patient's belly.

"It is not part of the doctor-patient relationship in that case," said Farley, a former president of the American Psychological Association who studies risk-taking personalities and behavior.

"Unless you think you are Georgia O'Keeffe and you think people's bodies are your canvas," he said, "why would you take that risk?"

2008-07-16T12:01:00.001-04:00

This is a very costly prank. Idiots!

23. July 15, Press-Register - (Alabama) Charges follow water alarm. Two young men who climbed to the top of a Stapleton, Alabama, water tower created a security scare and expense for the utility, as well as potential big bills and long jail sentences for themselves, a water system administrator said. The general manager of North Baldwin Utilities said the two suspects may have opened the hatch on top of the tower before they were brought down and arrested early Sunday. The incident triggered automatic safety measures designed to respond to a suspected terrorist attack - primarily the draining of 750,000 gallons from the tower. A crew was disinfecting it Monday and after testing, it will be refilled by the end of the week. Endangering the food or water supply is a Class B felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison upon conviction, according to state law. Source: http://www.al.com/news/press-register/index.ssf?/base/news/1216113332209370.xml&coll=3

Loser Steal from Food Bank!

2008-06-23T14:53:00.001-04:00

What kind of loser steals from the food bank? How low can you get to steal from the needy. I hope they catch these jerks and make them do community service feeding the poor and needy. What can you possibly do with that much chicken unless you have a store or somebody to unload it with, I hope they get caught too for buying stolen food.

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080623/NEWS01/80623028

God Speed Scott Kalitta

2008-06-23T09:19:00.001-04:00

Rest Easy Scott. Thanks for the show, you were one of the best and will be missed!

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080623/SPORTS16/806230343/1064

God Speed George Carlin

2008-06-23T08:53:00.001-04:00

Rest Easy George. Thanks for the laughs!

I grew up listening to George and had a friend who at 8 or so could quote all of his 7 words. I have always been a fan of his work. America has lost another great comedian.

I hope George passed his final exam, as quoted in "I was thinking how people seem to read the bible a lot more as they get older; then it dawned on my; they're cramming for their final exam."

God Speed Stephanie Callaway

2008-06-18T13:18:00.001-04:00

On Tues morning a tragic accident took the life of 31 year old Paramedic Stephanie Callaway and her Patient 82 year old Betty Hall.

Also injured in the crash we EMT's Micheal Wissman & Brice Hickman.

The News Journal has an article at http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080618/NEWS/806180356

Rehoboth Beach Fire has photos at http://www.rehobothbeachfire.com/gallery.cfm?id=254

http://www.delmarvanow.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080618/NEWS01/806180379

Rest Easy Sister.

TSA gets badges

2008-06-15T21:51:00.002-04:00

This article cracks me up. Airport cops are upset because the TSA folks will now get badges and blue cop type shirts!

OK, the whole reason they created TSA after 911 is because the contract guys who were doing airport screening were getting paid crap money and couldn't care less about the job. So we created a federal agency that pays folks crap money and most could care less about the job, the only difference is that now these folks have federal benefits and a retirement plan. We still have not solved the issue at hand we have only federalized a bunch of people who aren't much more qualified to do the job then the people you order a Big Mac from. Yes there are some high quality people who do a great job for TSA; but by and large they are minimum wage idiots. If you pay people 23K a year to do a job that requires attention to detail, customer service skills which only a saint can have, and a high stress enviroment you will not get quality people. If on the other had we did like Israel and other countries and paid these folks a good wage and gave them training and law enforcement powers then we would go a long way toward getting better quality screening and toward making us all much safer.
Right now these folks can only tell you to stop or ask you to comply but if they had arrest powers and the first person who pushed one of them was taken to the ground and cuffed then maybe they'd get more respect and would in turn do a better job.

This link is interesting. I quote the site with this;

Criminal Background Checks
FAR 108.33(c)(5) does not require criminal records checks for every screener applicant, only for those applicants who have specific deficiencies in their employment history, if there are other deficiencies in the application, or if the air carrier finds out that the applicant may have been convicted of certain kinds of crimes. The required criminal records check is with the FBI, but the regulations do not say anything about records checks from other countries.

How the hell can you not require a criminal background for these folks. In Delaware & PA and probably most other states in order to hire a security officer to guard a construction site he or she most undergo a criminal background check, in order to work at any federal facility a contractor most pass a local agency files check. But, as long as you have a stable employment history TSA will hire you to protect the public from terrorists boarding aircraft or putting bombs in luggage.

Well enough of my rant, have a great week!

2008-06-10T08:25:00.001-04:00

It's interesting how history repeats itself. Our local paper has what the headlines were 100 / 75 / 50/ 25 years ago. Well 75 years ago on this date the county was dealing with a heat wave, and Judge McDade ordered fans for the jurors and said coats could be removed. Also, Sam Sanders, a jeweler was buying gold, $7 an ounce for 10 karats or $17 an ounce for 22 karats!

Seems like that could be today, only the prices are higher and nobody has the decency to get dressed up for jury duty anymore.

Also, congrats to Chief John Bennett as he moves on to take the helm of the Paradise Valley PD in AZ. I have known John since I was a little kid. He's a great guy and Paradise Valley is lucky to get such a fine man. Good Luck Chief

Summer 2009

2008-06-09T08:05:00.000-04:00

OK, it's only the 2nd week of June and already we will be at or near 100 degrees here in the northeast. This does not bode well for the summer season. Gas has hit over $4.00 here, electricity costs have climbed, food rose 18%, and the unemployment rate has climbed higher than it has in a long time. Oil is up, stocks are down and people are pissed. Where are we heading this summer? Will people be able to keep themselves cool & fed? Will the choice have to be made on eating or driving to work? Of course that is just the tip of it, with the cost of oil & natural gas so high will people be able to keep warm enough to survive?

Something certainly needs to be done. We have planted a huge garden this year to try and save some money. We'll can some of it, and sell/give away what we can't use. So what are you doing to cut back and survive this economy?

The Voting Process is Broken

2008-06-04T09:19:00.000-04:00

OK, so please tell me how a candiate can win 44% of the votes yet the canditdate who only won 38% wins the nomination because of the "caucus victorys" and the electoral votes. What total BS. What happened to a Government Of the People, By the People, For the People. Granted the consititution clearly spells out the duties of the "Electors" from each state in Article II but that process seems to have been derailed by political cronyism and a lack of integrity. Maybe it's time to go to a straight popular vote and remove the "Electoral College" from the picture. In this day and age tallying the votes of every person who voted in the election is not the mammoth task it was back in the 1787 when most communication required a runner on horseback and could take several days to complete the journey one way. Now I can send an e-mail this minute and it will be received on the other side of the world in mere seconds. So why are we stuck with a system which is broken.

Well maybe someday we'll get it right but we do need to stop teaching the kids that anyone can be president, you can only be president if you are wealthy or have some very wealthy backers and some serious political pull. So we are no longer a government of the people, for the people and by the people. We are a government of the rich, for the rich and by the rich. George Washington is rolling over in his grave!

Today's Newsdesk

2008-06-04T07:30:00.001-04:00

I'm glad that the judge threw the book at this punk!

10-20 years in prison for armed robber HE AND HIS BROTHER PLEADED GUILTY TO A SERIES OF ROBBERIES By MICHAEL P. RELLAHAN, Staff Writer

WEST CHESTER - One of two brothers who robbed gas station convenience stores in southern Chester County has been sentenced to 10 to 20 years in state prison.

Jonathan Ocasio, 19, of West Nottingham, drew the sentence from Judge William P. Mahon after having pleaded guilty to charges of robbery, conspiracy, theft by unlawful taking and attempted robbery in March.

He and his brother, 22-year-old Jason Ocasio, had admitted to their involvement in three incidents after they were arrested by Oxford police in the midst of an attempted robbery at a Citgo gas station in June.

In that case - the most serious of the three - Jason Ocasio pointed a gun at a clerk, threatened to shoot him and fired a shot from a 9 mm handgun that smashed a display case.

Jonathan Ocasio stood before Mahon on Thursday with his attorney, Curt Norcini of Media. He was also ordered to spend 10 years on probation after serving his prison sentence. He has been incarcerated at Chester County Prison following his arrest last June.

Assistant District Attorney Mark Conte prosecuted the case.
The series of crimes began June 14, when Jonathan Ocasio robbed the Sunoco A-Plus Gas Station and Mini-Mart in the 300 block of Limestone Road in Lower Oxford.

Store clerk Lohit Yenimireddy told state police he was behind the counter about 9 p.m. when a man wearing a black scarf over his face entered the store, drew a knife and held it to his face, telling him to open the cash drawer and give him its contents.

When Yenimireddy did so, the man reached across the counter and took the entire drawer, which the clerk later said contained about $500. The robber then ran away.

Three days later, on June 17, two clerks were closing the Hostetter Gas Station and Mini Mart in the 400 block of Limestone Road - a few hundred feet from the Sunoco - just before 10 p.m. when they saw two masked men approach. When the would-be robbers found the doors locked, one tried to pry the door open.

The clerks, Pankaj Patel and Vilam Patel, said they shouted at the pair to leave and announced they were calling police. The intruders fled when they could not open the locked doors.

The brothers were apprehended June 18 when Oxford police interrupted them in the middle of their attempt to rob the Citgo station on South Third Street.

Two clerks who were in the store said the pair had come in shortly before 10 p.m. wearing dark bandannas over their faces and carrying guns.

One clerk said one of the robbers, later identified as Jonathan Ocasio, told him, "Give me your money or I'll shoot." He then jumped over the counter and began fighting with the clerk, punching him in the face and trying to bite him.

During the struggle, the clerk, who police did not identify in court records, knocked the gun from his assailant's hand, at which point the man told his partner, "Shoot him."

But the other robber, later identified as Jason Ocasio, was busy fighting with the other clerk, who had been in a back storage room when the robbery began and surprised the pair. Jason Ocasio bit the clerk on the arm and told him, "Leave me alone or I am going to shoot you and him," referring to the other clerk.

Just then, the gun Jason Ocasio was holding discharged and blew out a cigarette display case above the other clerk's head.

Oxford police officer Sean Gallagher was on patrol when he saw the commotion inside the Citgo and went inside. He wrested the gun from Jason Ocasio's hand and held him in custody until another officer arrived and subdued Jonathan Ocasio.

In a statement to police that night, both Jonathan and Jason Ocasio confessed to the three incidents. Jonathan Ocasio told investigators that in the first case, his brother acted as the getaway driver and the two split the robbery's haul.

Police found Jonathan Ocasio had been carrying a pellet gun and Jason Ocasio had been using a 9mm Smith & Wesson during the robberies.

Jonathan Ocasio was sentenced last Thursday; Jason Ocasio will be sentenced later.

She got beat by an old guy and a crippled guy! She needs to find another line of work.
KINGSTON, Pa. (AP) - June 3, 2008 -- A 21-year-old robbery suspect is jailed in Luzerne County thanks to the efforts of the 71-year-old victim and his friend in a wheelchair.

Harry Kopenis says he went to an ATM at a bank near his Kingston home Monday morning and withdrew $100 when a woman came out of nowhere. Police say the woman knocked Kopenis down, took his money and fled.

His neighbor Kevin Lamb was nearby in his electric wheelchair. Both men chased her. Lamb says Kopenis got the woman in a headlock and he grabbed the squirming woman.

The men weren't seriously injured.
The young woman faces theft, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief charges. She is locked up on $10,000 bail.

I'm glad that this school district treated this as the real crime that it is and filed felony charges on this kid. I guess his hopes of college are dashed now but ohh well, don't be a criminal and you won't go to jail! It's about time that the schools start taking IT security seriously though!

After raucous meeting about computer hack, residents still uneasy DOWNINGTOWN AREA INVESTIGATION ONGOING By DANIELLE LYNCH, Staff Writer

DOWNINGTOWN - Some district residents left Downingtown Area's cyber information session still feeling uneasy about a recent computer breach by a student who accessed Social Security numbers of thousands of taxpayers.

"Our investigation into the computer breach continues, and we are asking additional questions of many of our students, teacher and our staff members," said district spokeswoman and school board secretary Pat McGlone on Monday.

Last Thursday's session at Lionville Middle School began with comments from Superintendent Sandra Griffin. She acknowledged increased security should have happened more quickly.

As she spoke, Griffin was interrupted several times by angry, frustrated residents, prompting school board President Robert Eldredge to repeatedly interject that the meeting would be discontinued unless order was restored.

Similarly, 15 minutes into a panel discussion with guest speakers, residents yelled that they had heard enough and wanted to hear from district administrators.

On Monday, Eldredge said the meeting was a sincere attempt to give answers and make it known that the school board and administration's highest priority is to "recognize we had a problem" and resolve it.

Eldredge said some people wanted information about the risks of identity theft and others wanted answers to make them feel better.

Borough police arrested a 15-year-old Downingtown West High School freshman on May 21 and charged him with theft by unlawful taking or disposition, computer theft, unlawful duplication and computer trespass.

District administrators learned about the intrusion on May 9, when a student told Downingtown West's principal that another student might have personal information, Griffin said. But 71 school employees did not learn their 2005 W-2 forms were copied until May 16, and Griffin said this was because district officials had to first perform "due diligence."

According to police, the data files contained more than 41,000 adult taxpayers' names and personal information, including Social Security numbers, and more than 15,000 students' names and personal information. The school district sent out letters to 16,595 residences about the incident.

Eldredge said he received the school district's letter but believes it's a dead issue.
"For me, I'm comfortable that nothing was done with the information," Eldredge said.
Eldredge said most of the audience Thursday responded to his calls to restore order but a group of teenagers sitting in front of the auditorium were disruptive and disrespectful to speakers and administrators on stage throughout the meeting.

After two hours, Eldredge said, he reached a point where he needed to hold the teenagers to the same level of accountability as the rest of the audience. But while he was making his initial comments, he said, the students became disrespectful and he was unable to put his words into context. As a result, the students walked out of the auditorium, he said.

He said he has heard criticism and support from audience members about how he handled the situation.
A Downingtown West junior who asked to remain anonymous said he and seven other students at the meeting "were not being disruptive, in my point of view."

The student said he and his friends are interested in computer science and submitted questions to the panel about how the security would be boosted. He said they whispered among themselves during the meeting but "we were no more disruptive than anyone else."

Some Downingtown Area residents said remain uneasy about the security breach.
"If this was the private sector, people have lost jobs over this kind of performance," said district resident Michael Markowski of Uwchlan.

Griffin said actions, if any, against district administrators would not be made public. Similarly, she said, information regarding the discipline of any student would not be discussed in public.

Markowski did not attend Thursday's meeting. He said he is troubled because a similar intrusion happened to the district in December. "It's like Pearl Harbor happened once but then it happened again," he said.

In December, a student used illegal hacking and password retrieval software to open an encrypted file he had illegally downloaded. That student was arrested and has been charged with a felony, McGlone said. But she noted the December breach was a folder permission issue that was addressed immediately upon notification.

Folder permissions have been tightened, and discussions between two computer firms, Canon Business Solutions and CommSolutions, have taken place, McGlone said. With the help of these firms, the district is taking steps to consolidate 70 servers into seven though server virtualization. The district's central office server will be segregated from the network, McGlone said.

Additionally, at a May 14 school board meeting, the board approved the instructional technology department's request for authorization for a complete overhaul of the active directory file structures dealing with log-in, password security and folder access permissions.

Markowski said it's also troubling to know that administrators found out about this problem because another student told the principal about it.

West Bradford resident Phil Duffy attended the meeting Thursday and said he was particularly troubled by the conduct of Eldredge.

"Respect is a two-way street," said Duffy, a database expert who had his own firm since 1984 and previously worked for two other firms. Duffy said he believes Eldredge's threat to discontinue the meeting unless the audience showed respect for the speakers reflected a disrespect for the audience.

The lecture on identity theft was a way to avoid the real issues, Duffy said. He said comments from the technology department were also very troubling. But he said there also appears to be some "innocent ineptitude on the part of the district officials."

"I can't fault their strategy; they appear to be trying to communicate openly with the residents. But some of their tactics seem to be working against them," Duffy said.

During the meeting, district technology director Buck Jones cited the district's growth and human error as reasons for the breaches. He said the district did not have a good reporting system to determine cyber security incidents.

In addition to the Social Security numbers, the first and last names and dates of birth of taxpayers were included on this file, McGlone said. The district had used Social Security numbers as key indicators in the resident database prior to 2006. McGlone said the file that the student accessed was a copy of a report that had been issued in 2005. She said the district uses another key indicator now, and the new database does not include Social Security numbers.

"I have a tremendous objection to anyone but the county having this information," West Bradford resident Susan Singer said. And if there are instances of identity theft, "I will be more than outraged," she said.

Singer, a parent of two students who have been out of the school district for more than five years, said she doesn't understand why she received the letter from the district. She said district administrators should have made every effort to identify students and taxpayers in another way besides their Social Security numbers.

The computers and flash drives of the arrested student and another student who may have received information have been confiscated by police. The computers are now in forensic examination by the Chester County Detectives Computer Crime Unit, which will attempt to determine if the files have been disseminated to other people.

Chester County Detectives Chief Al DiGiacomo said the ongoing analysis is incomplete, and therefore he cannot comment about it.

To contact staff writer Danielle Lynch, send an e-mail to dlynch@dailylocal.com

SUV Stolen While FF Responds to Call!

2008-05-22T12:43:00.001-04:00

This is pretty low! Unfortunately they will probably never catch the thief! Granted he left the keys in it which is stupid but to steal a car from the firehouse lot is pretty low.

SUV stolen while Lewes man fights fire
The News Journal * May 22, 2008

A Lewes volunteer firefighter who left his SUV in the parking lot of the Lewes Fire Company while he responded to a fire returned to the station early this morning to find that the vehicle had been stolen, state police said.

The 46-year-old firefighter reported to the station at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday and left his blue 1999 Ford Explorer in the parking lot with the keys inside, said state police spokesman Sgt. Joshua Bushweller.

He responded to a reported structure fire on Coastal Highway, and when he returned at about 12:30 a.m., the vehicle was missing.

State police canvassed the area for the vehicle, and a trooper traveling west on Del. 9 near the Sussex East Mobile Home Park spotted a blue Ford Explorer at about 1:30 a.m., Bushweller said.

The Explorer entered the mobile home park, and the driver jumped out of the vehicle and fled into a wooded area, Bushweller said.

Police, including a K-9 unit, were unable to find the suspect, he said.

The vehicle was confirmed to be the stolen 1999 Ford Explorer and turned over to its owner, Bushweller said.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call investigators at 644-5020 or Crime Stoppers at (800) TIP-3333.

FW:

2008-05-22T07:13:00.001-04:00

I flew to and from Afghanistan & worked a bit with folks from this unit.
They are a top notch group of people. This is an interesting story about
their training to rescue shuttle astronauts.

http://www.wgal.com/video/16346291/index.html

Adventerous or Nuts?!?

2008-05-21T15:59:00.001-04:00

Maybe I don't have an adventureous spirit or something but I found this on craigslist and it seems nutso to me!

I'm going on a cross country road trip mid july starting from Philly!!

anyone looking to get around the country at the end of the summer?? I'm leaving from philly mid-july heading up through the midwest, over to cali, then down south across the bottom of the country then back up the east coast...a big square...the entire trip will be about a month and a half...if anyone needs a ride anywhere around there write me an email....just lookin for some gas money to chip in if you come along

Trucking Company Closes - A Sign of the Times!

2008-05-20T13:01:00.001-04:00

This isn't a good sign at all. I think it is however the first of many and a sign of things to come.

<<...OLE_Obj...>> By Jessica Borg
DELANCO, N.J. - May 19, 2008 (WPVI) -- A New Jersey trucking company is going out of business.
Jevic Transportation Trucking Company, based in Delanco, Burlington County is closing the doors, and laying-off 1,500 workers. Last year, Jevic had revenues of $350 million, but now the company's chief executive officer says soaring prices for diesel fuel are just too much to bear.

Jevic has been in business for 27 years. Employees like Edwin Arvelo worry where they'll go next. He's spent more than 10 years at Jevic. He was hoping that his job would be secure, even with the recent financial strain. "I figured I'd retire here, like everyone else," Arvelo said.

Employees found out just this morning that today would be their last day, and there are no severance packages.
"They took away bonuses, they took away this, they took away that, we were getting 'hold on', and we held on, and now we're getting no health care or life insurance from this day on," said Arvelo.

David Hardy said he enjoyed his 5 years at Jevic. "It's good place to work for, I just don't like how it came to an end."

Jevic says right now the whole trucking industry is struggling. "I think it's an economic perfect storm, rising fuel prices each week, we all know they're going up, and people aren't shipping as much as before. At lot of different factors went into this," said Peter Robinson, Vice President of Marketing.

Since going private 2 years ago, the company says it re-structured to improve costs. Jevic had the largest fleet of heated trailers in the country, which helped protect certain freight. But the company says even its good reputation and history couldn't save it.

Robinson said CEO Dave Gorman did what we could, to try to keep the company afloat. "We knew that he was probably fighting until the last possible moment, to try to bring something together."

Jevic will keep a handful of employees working for the next two months or so, in order to honor existing contracts.
(Copyright (c)2008 WPVI-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

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2008-05-16T15:19:00.001-04:00

This is a bit harsh for $69!
Pa. woman gets jail for Cub Scout scam involving son
Associated Press * May 16, 2008
EASTON, Pa. - A former Bethlehem woman will serve up to 23 months in prison for having her 7-year-old son dress as a Cub Scout to collect money for a nonexistent cause.

Fifty-one-year-old Sally Ann Gombocz told a Northampton County judge she wanted to apologize to anyone she hurt. She previously pleaded guilty to theft by deception and corruption of a minor.

Gombocz had her son dress as a scout in 2003 and tell people he was raising money for a camping trip. A prosecutor says the family collected $69.

Gombocz was sentenced Friday to six to 23 months in the county jail. She also was fined $2,000, ordered to perform community service, take parenting classes, have psychological counseling and submit to random urine screens. She also must pay restitution.

Today's News!

2008-05-15T12:53:00.001-04:00

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=6143092

This is a mess, middle school kids sending nude photos to their boyfriend! What have we become?

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=6144226

Reports indicate that this may have been intentional damage to 2 CH-47 helos. These are the work horses of that war transporting troops throught Iraq & Afghanistan. If it is I hope they catch the SOB! It's a shame that someone working in the defense industry would do something like this. I guess it's one more example that we are a military at war & not a country at war.

http://www.philly.com/philly/hp/news_update/20080515_Beetlemania__Giant_bugs_cause_quite_a_stir.html
Wonder if the custom's guys drew straws or went by senority on who would open the box!

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080515/NEWS/80515031/-1/updates
I Hope they catch these idiots and throw the book at them. Setting fire to an occupied home is attempted murder!

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080515/NEWS/80515022/-1/updates
Lastly please pause today and remember those who have given their lives in defense of the thin blue line.

Also, Happy Anniversary to my sweet and loving wife who has put up with me for 13 years of marriage and almost 18 years together.

Giant Bettles Seized!

2008-05-14T15:18:00.001-04:00

Eww. I guess somebody planned on having these for dinner or something!

PHILADELPHIA - Customs agents seized more than two dozen potentially harmful giant beetles - some the size of a child's hand - from a package after postal workers heard the insects making scratching noises.

The large bugs arrived last week from Taiwan at a postal facility in Mohnton, about 50 miles northwest of Philadelphia, in a box whose contents were labeled as toys, gifts and jellies, authorities said Wednesday.

But the postmaster suspected the box contained live organisms and notified authorities, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency. The package was sent to Philadelphia, where it was X-rayed and then opened.

"The specimens were some of the largest of their kind, and some of the largest I've ever seen, averaging five to six inches in diameter," said John Plummer, an agency agriculture specialist, said in a statement Wednesday. "They are highly destructive insect pests that can cause extensive damage to fruit and vegetable crops, trees, shrubs and turf grasses."

In all, authorities found 26 Hercules, Rhinoceros and Goliath beetles. It is illegal to ship live beetles into the United States without a permit from the Department of Agriculture.

It was not immediately clear if any charges were expected to be filed. A call to the customs agency was not immediately returned.

Idiot of the Week Award Winner!

2008-05-13T12:24:00.001-04:00

I got this from http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080513/NEWS/80513049. I think he either needs new glasses or to lose his license!

A 70-year-old New Jersey man was cited Monday afternoon after he allegedly made an illegal U-turn onto northbound I-95 and plowed into the side of a trooper's patrol car.

The driver, Lugene Smith, of Pleasantville, was cited for failure to obey a traffic control device.

State police spokesman Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said a trooper in a fully marked 2008 Ford Crown Victoria was driving north on I-95 in the left lane approaching the service area at about 3:26 p.m. when Smith, who was traveling in the left lane of southbound I-95, disregarded a posted sign and drove through a paved crossover "Marked For Emergency Vehicles Only."

Whitmarsh said the Ford Explorer that Smith was operating drove directly into the side of the trooper's car.

Both vehicles then pulled off to the right shoulder, where Smith was cited.

Fuel or Food

2008-05-01T13:51:00.001-04:00

Yesterday my local paper had the headline Fuel or Food! I guess it really has come to that as gas prices climb toward $4 a gallon here. Last night I paid $3.55 a gallon which is crazy. I am not sure how people will continue to live with the current economy. The price of oil drives up transportation costs which in turn drive up food costs, even ground beef is going for $2.49 a pound on sale and that's for the fatty stuff. Most meat is over $3.00 a lb and even fruit is over the top. The only thing that hasn't gone up by a large amount over the last year is peoples pay checks!

The price of electricity is expected to steadily rise as we enter summer and everyone uses their air conditioning. The cost of heating oil is over $3.50 a gallon which means to fill my 2 tanks which if I keep the house at 60 to 62 all day and all night might last me most of the winter will cost me nearly 2 grand! The government will give us various a "free" check but that will be a drop in the bucket! I don't do bad salary wise but really wonder how far it will continue to stretch as the cost of everything climbs higher and higher. Where will it all end?

Driver Accepts Fault in Trooper's Death

2008-04-23T16:18:00.001-04:00

I really hope they throw the book at this woman. It won't bring back the great young man, but it might send a message that driving like an idiot, under the influence of drugs & alcohol will not be tolerated. I think one of the main reason's that they haven't enacted tougher fines and sentences for DUI is because the lawyers and politicians are afraid that they will be the ones caught. DUI Homicide should be no different then any other homicide. I don't think it should be 3rd degree manslaughter, it should be second degree homicide because it should be a felony to drive under the influence! The mandatory minimum in PA is 3 years, I hope she gets a good bit more than that. Maybe one year for each of Trooper Iwaniec's life.

Driver accepts her fault for death SHE ASKS TO BEGIN HER SENTENCE FOR CAUSING CRASH THAT KILLED STATE TROOPER By JENNIFER MILLER, Staff Writer

AVONDALE - The woman accused of causing the death of a young state trooper sobbed Tuesday morning as a district judge read aloud the investigators' account of what happened on the night of the drunken-driving crash.

Kristina M. Quercetti, 40, of Landenberg, was intoxicated, speeding and driving with her headlights off when her vehicle crashed into 24-year-old Kenton E. Iwaniec's personal car on March 27, according to the arrest affidavit filed by state police at Avondale.

Quercetti's attorney indicated she did not intend to fight the charges against her and was ready to start serving an anticipated prison sentence Tuesday.

While leaving the courtroom, Quercetti said to reporters, "I just can't express how sorry I am."
Iwaniec was a native of western Pennsylvania who joined the Avondale barracks in January. He was heading to his Lancaster home after work when the crash happened about 10:15 p.m. on Route 41 near Mosquito Lane in London Grove.

Authorities said Quercetti was driving 73 mph with her headlights off when she crossed the road's center line and hit Iwaniec's car head-on. Quercetti's blood-alcohol content was 0.34 percent, records say, which is more than four times the state's 0.08 percent legal limit. She also had Oxycodone in her system, police said.

Authorities said they found a partially full bottle of vodka and 20 Oxycodone pills wrapped in cellophane inside Quercetti's purse in her vehicle.

Iwaniec was flown to Christiana Hospital in Newark, Del., where he died the next day during surgery, police said. Delaware Medical Examiner Jennie Vershvousky said Iwaniec died from the multiple blunt force injuries suffered in the crash, records say.

Quercetti's 4-year-old son was in the back seat of her car at the time of the crash and was uninjured, police said.
At her arraignment Tuesday, Quercetti cried and leaned into the defendant's table with her head in her hands as Magisterial District Judge Thomas Martin Jr. read aloud the affidavit.

Quercetti, who suffered a minor injury in the crash, was wearing a black brace over her left foot and calf. She also used a walker to get from the state police barracks to the district court next door. She was accompanied by her mother, who also cried during the arraignment.

After hearing the charges, Thomas Ramsay, the attorney representing Quercetti after the crash, told Martin his client would not be posting bail. Instead, he said, his client wanted to immediately go to prison to start serving her anticipated sentence.

Before the arraignment, Ramsay said, "Kristina recognizes that her actions caused an innocent young man with a promising career in law enforcement to lose his life. So, although the family has the financial ability to post bail, she has decided to begin serving her sentence now in recognition of the tragic consequences of her driving behavior."

State police charged Quercetti with homicide by vehicle while under the influence, aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of a child, reckless endangerment, driving under the influence and related charges.

Outside the courtroom, Ramsay said he expects his client to plead guilty and let a judge determine her sentence. The charge of homicide by vehicle while under the influence carries a minimum mandatory prison sentence of three years.

Her attorney said Quercetti's courtroom tears were "for the trooper, for the trooper's family and for her son. She cries for herself last."

First Assistant District Attorney Patrick Carmody said the circumstances surrounding the crash - the speed, the opened bottle of alcohol, the child's involvement and the turned-off headlights - are "shocking."

"Any homicide by vehicle is tragic ... but what's unusual in this case is the extreme recklessness of it," Carmody said from his office.

Carmody said he is still working to determine what sentence he will ask a judge to hand out. But he said Quercetti opting to go to prison now will "make sense to the public because she's off the street."

The move also helps her earn credit in Chester County Prison toward her anticipated state prison sentence, Carmody said.

After Quercetti was taken to prison, state trooper Corey Monthei read a prepared statement at the Avondale barracks.
"Our thoughts are with both families involved in this tragic accident," Monthei said.
Iwaniec graduated from the state police academy in January. Cpl. Steven Ranck, one of the crash's investigators, was Iwaniec's supervisor. Ranck said less than a week before Iwaniec's death he was put into a patrol car on his own.

"He was a great guy ... a real bubbly person," Ranck said. "There's no doubt in my mind he would've made an excellent state trooper."

Iwaniec was born Dec. 18, 1983, in Greensburg to parents Kenneth and Debra Garchar Iwaniec of Ligonier. He had three sisters. He was engaged to marry Julie Kromer of Greensburg.

At Ligonier Valley High School, he played football and ice hockey before graduating in 2002.
A 2007 graduate of St. Vincent's College, Iwaniec was a devout Catholic who acted as an altar server for more than 10 years at St. Boniface Parish in Chestnut Ridge. Then, while at the academy, he regularly helped set up for Saturday night Mass.

After an April 4 funeral at St. Vincent Basilica Parish, roughly 40 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, Iwaniec was buried at Fairmont Cemetery in Cook Township. Roughly 160 state troopers attended the services with hundreds of Iwaniec's family members and friends.

To contact staff writer Jennifer Miller, send an e-mail to jmiller@dailylocal.com

Mom & Dad are Not Stuck on Stupid, but Jr is!

2008-04-22T09:32:00.001-04:00

Gee, Mom & Dad are stupid, they won't question 10lbs of fertilizer being deliverd, they'll think I'm in 4H or something! Good job to Mom & Dad for making the difficult call to the police and turning in their own son.

April 21, CNN - (South Carolina) Teen could have made bomb in minutes, police say. A South Carolina high school senior arrested in an alleged bomb plot had the ingredients to assemble a bomb in minutes, police said Monday. The teenager was arrested Saturday after his parents called police when ten pounds of ammonium nitrate, an oxidizing agent in explosives, was delivered to their home, a police official said. The teen told authorities he had experimented with explosives in the past and that he planned to make several bombs to detonate at Chesterfield in a "Columbine followup," the official said. He planned out in detail his intentions for multiple explosions at the school and even recorded an audiotape meant to be heard after he attacked the school and killed himself, though he had not set a date for his plans, said the same source. The police chief said investigators are not aware of any accomplices. Source: http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/21/school.bomb.plot/

Dopehead Moron!

2008-04-11T11:59:00.001-04:00

This is why they call it dope!
NEW CASTLE - Delaware State Police arrested a New Castle man early today in connection with drug charges after being called to investigate a man passed out behind the wheel of his vehicle.

Officers arrived in the area of Rodgers Road and New Castle Avenue at 12:54 a.m. There, a 2003 Ford Explorer had stopped in the intersection, still running, the driver passed out and unresponsive, police said.

Officers identified the operator as Edward J. Hightower, 34, of New Castle. Officers said they found marijuana in the vehicle, as well as suspected drug money.

Hightower, whom police described as impaired by alcohol, was charged with possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, maintaining a vehicle for keeping marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving while under the influence of alcohol. Bail information was not available.

God Speed Trooper Iwaniec

2008-03-28T20:21:00.001-04:00

A sad day for the PA State Police. Rest Easy Brother.

Pa. trooper killed in head-on crash in Chester County
By TERRI SANGINITI • The News Journal • March 28, 2008

The trooper was identified as Kenton Iwaniec, 24, of Lancaster, Pa.

State police spokesman Cpl. Steve Ranck said the crash occurred about 10:20 p.m. Thursday on Pa. 41 at Mosquito Lane.

Ranck said 40-year-old Kristina M. Quercetti, of Landenberg, was driving south on Pa. 41 when she crossed the center line into the northbound lane and her 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe hit the driver’s side of a 1997 Chevrolet Silverado before plowing head-on into the trooper’s 2005 Hyundai Elantra.

The driver of the Silverado, Larry Keith, 64, of Ephrata, was wearing a seat belt and was not injured.

The trooper, who was also wearing a seat belt and whose airbag deployed, was flown to Christiana Hospital in Stanton where he was pronounced dead.

Ranck said the trooper was returning home when the crash occurred.

Quercetti suffered only minor injuries.

A 5-year-old passenger seated in a car safety seat in her car was not injured.

Both were taken by West Grove Fire Company’s ambulance to Christiana Hospital for treatment.

The cause of the fatal crash remains under investigation. No charges have been filed pending the outcome of the investigation.

Police are asking anyone who may have witnessed the crash or the events leading up to it to call Ranck at (610) 268-2022.

Contact Terri Sanginiti at 324-2771 or tsanginiti@delawareonline.com.

Mumia Abul Jamal Should Die!

2008-03-27T11:53:00.000-04:00

This is BS! Mumia murdered Danny Faulkner in cold blood and deserves to die for his crimes NOW! If it wasn't that he has become the poster child for the Anti Death Penalty crowd he'd have nothing to keep up his appeals with. I hope the judge can see that he still needs to die 26 years after he murdered a fine police officer. My prayers go out to his widow & the rest of his family. I used to work with his brother Tom who was a fine individual.

If you want the real story behind this murder check out, http://www.danielfaulkner.com/
Pa. court orders new penalty hearing for Mumia Abu-Jamal
Associated Press * March 27, 2008
PHILADELPHIA - A federal appeals court today upheld Mumia Abu-Jamal's conviction for murdering a Philadelphia police officer in 1981, but agreed with a lower court that he cannot be executed without a new penalty hearing.

The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Abu-Jamal's conviction should stand, but that he should get a new sentencing hearing because of flawed jury instructions.

If prosecutors don't want to give him a new death penalty hearing, Abu-Jamal would be sentenced automatically to life in prison.

The former Black Panther had appealed his conviction, arguing that racism by the judge and prosecutors corrupted his 1982 conviction at the hands of a mostly white jury. Prosecutors, meanwhile, had appealed a federal judge's 2001 decision to grant Abu-Jamal a new sentencing hearing because of the allegedly flawed jury instructions.

A Philadelphia jury convicted Abu-Jamal of killing Officer Daniel Faulkner, 25, after th e patrolman pulled over Abu-Jamal's brother in an overnight traffic stop.

Since his trial, Abu-Jamal's name has become a rallying cry for activists of many stripes to take to the streets in both the United States and Europe.

Hundreds of people protested outside the federal building in Philadelphia in May and an overflow crowd - including legal scholars, students, lawyers, the policeman's widow and Abu-Jamal's brother - filled the courtroom when the appeals court heard arguments about the case.

The officer's widow, Maureen Faulkner, has kept her husband's memory alive over the years, and recently co-wrote a book about the case. The book, "Murdered by Mumia: A Life Sentence of Loss, Pain and Injustice," written with radio talk-show host Michael Smerconish, came out in December.

Few expect the fervor that permeates the case on both sides to die down, even with the appeal court's decision.

"Regardless of the decision, if anything it will heat up the outcry from people in the public," Mumia's lawyer, Robert R. Bryan of San Francisco, said in March. "I think the support from people not only here, but all across Europe will escalate."

4 to 20 Years for Theft?

2008-03-26T11:14:00.001-04:00

OK, I realize that what she did was a crime and she broke the public's trust etc. However, I do feel that 4 to 20 is a bit harsh for what she did. Yes she stole a huge amount of money and even though she was ordered to pay restitution she will never be able to pay it all back but, 4 years in jail? I am sure that the space could be better used for someone who is a danger to society and deserves to be locked away. 4 years of house arrest or something along those lines maybe but not 4 years in a state prison.

Ridley woman craps out, gets jail in swindle
By Marlene DiGiacomo mdigiacomo@delcotimes.com
Carol Ackley, a former Ridley School District employee, was sentenced to 4 to 20 years in jail for stealing more than $570,000 from the district.

MEDIA COURTHOUSE - Carol Ackley gambled - and lost.
Ackley, 57, of the 300 block of Seventh Avenue, who ripped off the Ridley School District to the tune of more than half a million dollars to feed her gambling habit, lost more than money.

In the end she forfeited her freedom, devastated her family, and left a black mark on the district where both she and her husband earned their livelihood.

Dressed in prison red and remaining shackled, Ackley was sentenced Tuesday by Judge James Nilon to four to 20 years in a state prison to be followed by eight years probation. She has also turned over her pension benefits and other money to cover part of the restitution, which Deputy District Attorney Gregory Hurchalla expressed doubts she can ever fully repay.

Ackley was employed with the district for the past seven years and "used her position of trust" handling retired teachers' health insurance checks to steal $573,792.71, according to Hurchalla.

Ridley Superintendent Dr. Nicholas Ignatuk testified that none of the retired personnel lost any money since the district was reimbursed by its insurance carrier. He said the money involved monthly checks from retirees for payment of health benefits maintained by the district until they reached 65.

He added that during the time she stole the funds, the district lost more than $60,000 in interest on the money, which Nilon also ordered her to repay.

Defense attorney Kevin Wray argued that she had a serious gambling addiction and "needed a fix" by promptly depositing the stolen loot in slot machines from Chester to Las Vegas.

Wray also attempted to blame the auditors for not picking up on the losses over the seven-year period and noted that the district was insured.

Nilon said he was not impressed by that argument. The judge also explained that Ackley was not a "poverty-stricken" person who lacked education. He pointed out she held an associate degree in business from Temple and also had been employed previously for a bank.

Nilon termed it a "carefully set-up plan to bilk money" from the district.
Hurchalla pointed to testimony from Ignatuk that the records indicated no money was taken by her during the time when the auditors were around examining the books.

He said that proved she was not an "out-of-control gambler;" but "when the auditors are gone, it's off to Vegas we go."

Hurchalla also showed her tax returns, which in the year 2007 showed she had taken a "$75,000 hit" in gambling losses.
Ackley buried her head and sobs could be heard as her son Michael Harrison was on the stand and he began crying. "There's a hole in my heart right now," said Harrison. "She should get treatment - whatever she needs to help her."

Ackley also apologized to the township and to her family.
"Yes, it is an addiction. I was humiliated and I was ashamed ... I didn't know where to turn," she said.
The stocky Ackley, who stands just 4 feet 11 inches tall, pleaded guilty in January to charges including seven counts of theft by deception, unlawful use of a computer and forgery.

Herbert Ackley also was called to the stand by Wray. He said he and his wife of 20 years did everything together, including hitting the casinos.

Herbert Ackley, who also was employed with the district as a painter, denied knowing his spouse had taken the money. He did, however, acknowledge he was just a machine away during all of the gambling excursions, which included traveling to Nevada and spending time at pricey hotels and restaurants.

He said he was "shocked" when he found out last December about the stolen money, adding that his wife's arrest forced the family to put Christmas on hold.

"My head has been spinning ever since," said Ackley. He also expressed hope that she would receive treatment rather than imprisonment.

On cross-examination, Hurchalla questioned Ackley as to how he could be enjoying the perks of all the casino trips when the two earned about $70,000 yearly for a family of five. Ackley denied knowing the exact amount of his wife's salary.

He said he thought she was winning and he didn't have "a clue" she was using district money for their enjoyment.
Hurchalla asked Ackley whether he knew the rooms and fancy steak house dinners were being paid for by Ridley taxpayers.
"Not mine," Ackley responded.
Hurchalla told the court that during her stealing spree, she ripped off $80,000 a year.
The prosecutor indicated that her husband was not just along for the ride and suggested he may have had more knowledge of what was going on than he admitted.

Hurchalla added that Ackley was crafty in manipulating funds so that even the auditors did not detect a problem until just last year when a Wachovia banking official spotted an irregularity and the scheme began to unravel.

"She used her prior banking experience, as well as her intimate knowledge of the Ridley Township district to engage in a very clever scheme," said Hurchalla.

Latest News from the Homefront

2008-03-24T14:42:00.001-04:00

So Sunday morning I come home from my Part-Time gig and find that someone had driven through my front yard and destroyed my address post. I was unhappy to say the least and figured it was some idiot drunk since we live on a major roadway. So I called a friend of mine who's a police officer in a neighboring township to see if they busted any drunks. Well it turns out there is a bit more to the story, apparently there was a police chase and it came through my yard! Never a dull moment.

In other the head of our local 911 center is considering his career options after his 49 year old wife was arrested last week in a crackdown on "Escort" services in Philadelphia. This man is a retired Air Force Colonel so I am sure he is making enough to make ends meet but I guess his wife needed her own job. I personnally think prositution should just be legalized and taxed but I cannot imagine the embarresment of having your wife's name in the paper as an escort.

In personal news Vicki is now a diabetic, no insulin but checking her sugar regularly and just perscribed a pill to take to help her liver process the sugar better. The only good thing is the local hospital has a 3 night class for diabetics which we are taking. It seems that everyone in there was pre-diabetic for a while before being a full out diabetic which make me wonder why the insurance companies won't pay for classes like this while people are still in the pre-diabetic stage and head it off before it becomes an issue of medicine etc! The same goes for smoking, they offer nothing to stop smoking, instead Blue Cross has a health coach who calls constantly to chat even though we have nothing we need from them. They have sent us 3 magnets so far and then on Sat offered to send another one and a letter explaining the program. I had to tell the nice lady that we knew all about it and didn't need any more magnets! It's no wonder health care has become unaffordable for many because the system focuses on caring for people after they are ill instead of preventing the illness in the first place. I am sure if everyone in the class had been given the oppurtunity to take the class before becoming a diabetic 90% of them would have jumped at it and maybe 2 or 3 wouldn't be there right now.

Ohh well, if anyone is still reading my blog please let me know!

Sausage Sandwich Saves I-95 From Collapse!

2008-03-19T11:50:00.001-04:00

You really can't make this stuff up!
http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080319/NEWS/80319029
Sandwich-seeking engineer spotted cracked I-95 pillar
Associated Press
Posted Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 11:14 am
PHILADELPHIA - A structural engineer's hankering for a hot sausage sandwich might have helped save Interstate 95 from collapse.

Peter Kim and his colleague Tony Jen, on their way back to their office after an inspection nearby, pulled off I-95 in the city's Port Richmond neighborhood for a late lunch Monday afternoon. After eating sausage sandwiches in their car, they were driving alongside the elevated highway when Kim spotted a huge crack in a concrete support column.

Kim, who works for a Bristol consulting firm named Specialty Engineering, took pictures of the cracked column with his cell phone and called PennDOT immediately.

The 6-foot crack in a 15-foot tall column led transportation officials to close a three-mile stretch of the highway within hours of Kim's discovery.

The interstate remained closed Wednesday morning as workers erected four steel towers to take the weight off the pillar and support the highway, which carries about 190,000 vehicles a day.

The roadway was expected to reopen once the towers were finished, a task expected to take at least until Wednesday night. Workers then will set about to repair or replace the damaged column.

Kim does contract work for the state Department of Transportation and had inspected the column twice in the last three years. Its condition had always been stable but he saw that it had dramatically changed since he last saw it in December.

As a bridge inspector, Kim is constantly looking at structures, even casually, on his time off.

"I just felt like I was doing my job," said Kim, 40, of Horsham. "Definitely anybody who saw it would have reported it."

3 Doors Down Citizen Soldier

2008-03-16T20:24:00.000-04:00

An Excellent Video for a great song.

Beyond the boundaries of your city's lights,
Stand the heroes waiting for your cries.
So many times you did not bring this on yourself,
When that moment finally comes,
I'll be there to help.

On that day when you need your brothers and sisters to care,
I'll be right here.
Citizen soldiers holding the light for the ones that we guide from the dark of despair.
Standing on guard for the ones that we sheltered,
We'll always be ready because we will always be there.

When there are people crying in the streets,
When they're starving for a meal to eat,
When they simply need a place to make their beds,
Right here underneath my wing,
You can rest your head.

On that day when you need your brothers and sisters to care,
I'll be right here!
Citizen soldiers holding the light for the ones that we guide from the dark of despair.
Standing on guard for the ones that we sheltered,
We'll always be ready because we will always be there...

There... there... there...

Hope and pray that you'll never need me,
But rest assured I will not let you down.
I'll walk beside you but you may not see me,
The strongest among you may not wear a crown.

On that day when you need your brothers and sisters to care,
I'll be right here!
On that day when you don't have the strength for the burden you bear,
I'll be right here!
Citizen soldiers holding the light for the ones that we guide from the dark of despair.
(Citizen soldiers)
Standing on guard for the ones that we sheltered,
We'll always be ready because we will always be there.

God Speed Nick Picozzi

2008-03-05T22:47:00.004-05:00

Today, America lost a brave hero and a family lost a Husband, a Father, & a Son. the fire service family lost a brother. While I didn't know Nick, he was still a brother firefighter.

Here's a link to the local news story.

Rest Easy Brother your work here is done.

Update: This is a great article from Phil Heron on the Delco Daily Times.

Brrr it's cold again & I need a vacation!

2008-02-28T10:12:00.000-05:00

It's cold again here and I am in the mood for some better weather and a slower lifestyle. As Kenny Chesney says " Oh I wish I was there tonight, on Jost Van Dyke, sipping on some Foxy's firewater rum, or kickin back with Ivan and all friends down in the islands, it wouldn't take much for me to up and run. To another life, somewhere in the sun!

I think that living on a place like Jost Van Dyke is just what the doctor ordered to de-stress and decompress. The island is small enough that gas is not an issue because you can walk or ride your bike anywhere you want to. Yeah the occasional hurricane might be a problem. Of course getting me out of Foxy's everyday might be another story all together.

Check out Foxy's at http://www.foxysbar.com/home.html

Check out all of Jost (pronouced Yost) Van Dyke at http://www.jostvandyke.com/

Ooops Wrong Bar!

2008-02-28T07:28:00.001-05:00

Who says Bikers are bad people!
Dude, I Think We Picked the Wrong Bar
The Associated Press
SYDNEY, Australia - An armed robber picked the wrong target when he raided an Australian bar where a biker gang was holding a meeting. He ended up hog-tied and in a hospital.

The man and an accomplice, wearing ski masks and waving machetes, stormed into a club in a western Sydney suburb shortly before 9 p.m. Wednesday and yelled at patrons to lie down as they tried to rob the cash register, police said Thursday.

About 50 members of the Southern Cross Cruiser Club had just started a club meeting in another room, and the bikers jumped up to intervene.

One robber escaped by leaping over a balcony, while the other tried to flee through a service entrance, the club's president, who identified himself only as "Jester," told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

"We caught him at the fence and crash-tackled him and hog-tied him to the ground and waited for the police to get there," Jester said.

Police confirmed that club patrons had subdued one of the robbers, who was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, but did not give further details. Police captured the other suspect nearby.

Jester said the robbers had walked past the bikers as they entered the bar but apparently failed to notice them, perhaps because the ski masks obscured their vision.

"I don't think he did his homework very well," Jester said of the ringleader. "He picked the wrong night."

17yo Tries to Murder a Housing Cop

2008-02-18T15:10:00.002-05:00

Is this how messed up our society has become? A 17 year old thug tried to kill a housing cop in cold blood last night in Philly! The kid knocked on the door of the security booth and when the cop answered it he pulled out a rifle and shot the officer. Fortunatly the officer was only grazed and was able to slam the door shut before the punk fired 2 more rounds into the bullet proof glass. This was going to be a cold blooded execution of a law enforcement officer by a 17 year old thug! WTF is this world coming to?

Teen charged with shooting officer
By Dwight Ott and Barbara Boyer

INQUIRER STAFF WRITERS

A 17-year-old has been charged with attempted murder after the shooting of a Philadelphia Housing Authority officer gunned down in Germantown late last night.
The officer, Craig Kelley, 49, a 17-year authority veteran, remains in stable condition at Temple University Hospital after being shot in the side at point-blank range while manning a security booth in the Queen Lane Apartments, said homicide Capt. Mike Costello.

The suspect, Zahir Johnson of the 2300 block of Diamond Street in North Philadelphia, was picked up by patrol officer Robert Lee. He saw Johnson in the area, fitting a vague description that witnesses provided of the gunman, Costello said.

Costello said it is unclear what motivated the shooting, which occurred about 10:15 p.m. It does not appear the gunman said anything before firing, but authorities said they had only brief interviews with Kelley.

Lee said he was heading toward the shooting scene at 301 W. Queen Lane when he saw a male on a nearby dark street with partial lighting.

Police were looking for a male in a brown jacket, and Lee said Johnson was wearing a brown sweatshirt.

Police said they also found a backpack and rifle they believe was the weapon used during the assault.

Costello said Kelley was shot in left side after the gunman approached the booth, enclosed in bulletproof glass, and knocked on the door. Kelley opened the door and quickly retreated, and closed the door as the assailant pulled the rifle and shot.

The first shot entered the security booth while the door was open and hit Kelley at the bottom of his bulletproof vest, causing his most serious injury. Costello said the vest possibly saved the officer's life.

The gunman fired two more shots at the glass before he fled, Costello said. Authorities flooded the area looking for the suspect as Kelley was rushed to Temple.

Richard Zappile, chief of the Philadelphia Housing Authority, said Kelley was working an overtime shift and is "a good guy" and conscientious officer.

The security booth was the target of a robbery about two weeks ago and authorities are investigating whether the two crimes are related.

15 Punished for 911 Call Response!

2008-02-14T07:51:00.000-05:00

This is F'd up. Punished? People get Punished for showing up late too many times. For complete apathy and disregard for their job people should be fired if not held on criminal charges for being negilgent in their duties to the public. This is not really much different than a police officer driving by a robbery in progress and not stopping! The job is to answer the phone for 911 not to chat with your coworkers about who knows what! I think at the very least all 10 who sat by and did nothing along with the supervisor(s) who clearly had to have seen what was happening should be fired immediately!

Posted on Thu, Feb. 14, 2008

15 punished for 911 call response
Trapped in fire, woman dialed for help and was put on hold.
By Larry King
Inquirer Staff Writer
Brenda Orr of Doylestown was trapped in a burning bed, immobilized by multiple sclerosis, when she dialed 911 on Jan. 29.

Twenty-eight seconds passed before a Bucks County dispatcher answered Orr's call.
Then he put her on hold.
It took 26 more seconds for a second dispatcher to pick up.
"911. The bed is on fire," Orr, 53, yelled into her phone.
By then a minute had elapsed since Orr had first dialed. A half-minute later, she spoke her final words before the phone went dead.

"The bed is fully inflamed," she said.
Bucks County officials, acknowledging that Orr's call had been mishandled, announced yesterday that 11 dispatchers and four supervisors had been disciplined for their roles in dealing with it.

Orr died in the quick-moving house fire. While a faster response by the dispatchers would not have saved her, "mistakes were made, and for those mistakes we are truly sorry," said James F. Cawley, chairman of the Board of County Commissioners.

Under county regulations, the phone should have been answered within 10 seconds, and Orr should not have been placed on hold.

In a dispatch center where answering the phone is a basic duty, 10 unoccupied dispatchers sat by and let it ring. Orr's call finally was taken by a frustrated dispatcher who already was juggling an ambulance call.

"While the phone was ringing six times, there were 10 people on duty who were capable of answering the phone call who failed to do so," Cawley said. "That was wrong."

Had one of them answered, there would have been no need to put Orr on hold.
All 10 were disciplined, along with the dispatcher who, by taking the call, violated rules by trying to handle two calls at once.

"911. Can you hold one second please?" the dispatcher is heard saying to Orr on a recording of the call.
"I can't," Orr responds. "This is an emergency, 911 emergency. . . . Bed on fire."
The dispatcher then summoned another dispatcher, who did not get to the phone for 25 seconds. The second dispatcher, who had been occupied with receiving a fax, has not been disciplined.

Citing privacy concerns, Cawley would neither identify the disciplined workers nor specifically describe their punishments.

The first dispatcher had picked up the call "out of frustration," said Brent Wiggins, the county's director of emergency services. He said none of the 10 idle dispatchers could explain why the call was not answered right away.

"They were off-base. They weren't paying attention to their job. They were just not doing their job properly," Wiggins said. "That's the bottom line. . . . One or two said they thought someone else was going to pick up the phone."

Of four supervisors on duty, three had gone to a meeting - on training fire dispatchers. That left just one to monitor the room. And that supervisor was "working on reports," according to the county's investigative summary. "No supervisor was actively monitoring the dispatch floor at the time of the call."

All four supervisors were disciplined.
The county's findings came after Doylestown Borough police reviewed the 911 call as part of their investigation into the fire. Alerted by police, borough officials demanded an explanation from the county.

Det Ansinn, president of the Borough Council, yesterday applauded county officials for investigating.
"We're encouraged by it," Ansinn said. "Our folks have been looking for a response to the issues raised by how the call was handled."

Police and firefighters arrived at Orr's house in better-than-average time, Cawley said. The first rescuers were there less than four minutes after Orr's call, but by then the fire was too intense for them to reach her.

Long afflicted by multiple sclerosis, she died of smoke and soot inhalation. Fire officials said it was impossible to determine the cause of the fire, though careless smoking and a jumble of electrical devices in her bedroom are among the suspects.

Orr's mother, Martha Orr of Doylestown, declined to comment yesterday.
Cawley called the mistakes an aberration among the 900,000 calls handled annually by county dispatchers.
Still, every dispatcher has been required to sit with a supervisor, listen to the tape of Orr's call, and discuss what happened. They were also played a tape in which a dispatcher gave "exemplary service" to a caller, Wiggins said.

Department policy now requires at least two supervisors to monitor the dispatch floor at all times. And a policy that implied that 911 calls were never to be put on hold has now been made explicit, he said.

County dispatchers are expected to relocate this summer to a modernized facility in Ivyland. One improvement of that center will be a phone system that automatically routes an incoming call to the dispatcher who has been idle for the longest time.

"There will be no more 'Who's going to answer this call?' " Wiggins said.

911 Call From 340 Doyle St.
0:00 (sound of dialing, followed by series of rings)
0:23 (seventh ring)
0:28 Male dispatcher: "911. Can you hold one second, please?"
0:29 Brenda Orr: "I can't. This is an emergency, 911 emergency. Three four zero Doyle. Bed on fire."
0:54 Female dispatcher: "Thanks for holding. 911. Where's your emergency?"
0:56 Orr: "911."
0:58 FD: "Hello?"
0:59 Orr: "911. The bed is on fire. Three four zero Doyle. Three four zero Doyle."
1:05 FD: "What township or borough are you in?"
1:07 Orr: "Three forty Doyle."
1:09 FD: "What township or borough are you in?"
1:10 Orr: "The borough."
1:11 FD: "What borough?"
1:12 Orr: "Doylestown!"
1:17 FD: "Are you still in the house?"
1:19 Orr: "What?"
1:20 FD: "Are you still in the house?"
1:22 Orr: "Yes."
1:23 FD: "All right. Well, you want to get out of the house?"
1:24 Orr: "No. I'm disabled."
1:31 Orr: "The bed is fully inflamed."
1:37 FD: "Ma'am, you still there?" (sounds of typing)
1:43 FD: "Hello?"
1:59 FD: (speaking to a coworker) "She won't get out of the house. She says she's disabled . . ."
2:09: Doylestown and Plumsteadville Fire Companies dispatched to scene.
(Phone line remains open with no conversation)
2:46 FD: (to a coworker) "The line's open, but I can't hear anything. I can hang up and try calling her back, right? ... I don't know if I should hang up or stay here and see if she comes back to me. It sounds like she was trying to put the fire out in the bed."

3:42: (call ends)
SOURCE: Recording made by Bucks County Emergency Services.

Listen to the 911 tape and read reports on the case at http://go.philly.com/brendaorr

Contact staff writer Larry King
at 215-345-0446 or lking@phillynews.com.

Great Video

2008-02-11T20:39:00.001-05:00

Another great fire video! Thanks Shaggy!

Reporters Learn about being cops.

2008-02-08T14:08:00.000-05:00

This is a great article. I wish more reporters would take this step. Great job to Phila PD for taking the time to run the reporters through the FATS program. Hopefully it will give them some idea of what it's like to face danger like cops do every day.

Jill Porter: For cops, in life, shooting is real
Philadelphia Daily News
THE WOMAN is drunk. She comes out of the house holding a huge knife.
She has already slashed her boyfriend in the neck and now she's waving it at me.
"Drop the knife," I demand, as she screams about the indignities she has suffered. She's close enough to rush me and stab me before I can react.

"Drop it," I command.
To my relief, she flings the knife onto the lawn. Then she reaches into her back pocket.
For what?
Am I in mortal danger? Is she reaching for a gun?
I stand there, pointing my gun at her.
Should I shoot?

It wasn't real. It was a simulation, part of an exercise at the Police Academy staged for the media yesterday by the Philadelphia Police Department.

The point was to show "how much time you have to make a decision whether to pull your weapon or not," said Deputy Commissioner Charlotte Council.

The training exercise, mandatory for police recruits and every officer who fires his or her gun in the line of duty, involves a volatile scenario unfolding on a wall-sized video screen called a Firearms Training Simulator (FATS).

In my case, the incident involved a domestic dispute with the knife-wielding woman.
There are more than 200 scenarios - including an agitated man menacing police with a machete while holding a baby and a driver firing a shotgun with bystanders in the background.

The scene unfolds as you face the screen holding a department-issue 9 mm Glock modified into a laser gun. You have seconds to decide whether the confrontation requires deadly force.

"It tests marksmanship and judgmental abilities when faced with critical incidents," said Capt. Mark Fisher, head of the academy's firearms-training unit.

"Any mistake they make, it's better if they make it here than on the street."
The recruits are debriefed and evaluated at the end of the sessions about whether they made the correct choice. Some scenarios have different outcomes.

The Police Department has been widely criticized since officers shot and killed three civilians last month, including one on New Year's Eve when an officer fired into a crowded rowhouse.

Mayor Nutter has ordered Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey to lead a "complete review and analysis" of department policies on the use of deadly force.

But many police resent anyone who questions their split-second, life-or-death decisions from the safety and accuracy of hindsight. Recent columns I've written that were critical of the police have even incited some readers to call me a cop-hater. So I asked the department last week if I could do the FATS exercise. The department invited all the media to do so.

I stand in the darkened room, pointing the gun.
I make instant assessments of the woman who's reaching into her pocket.
Her ire is directed at her boyfriend, not me. The boyfriend, who'd run out of the house holding a towel to his bleeding neck, warned she had a knife. Surely he'd know if she had a gun.

Although she'd stabbed her boyfriend, he'd more than likely drop charges. Nothing suggests she'd shoot.
It took 5.2 seconds from the time she came out of the house until she reached into her pocket - although it seemed much longer.

I held fire.
She pulled a bottle of booze out of her pocket and took a long slug.
I'd made the right choice.
It occurred to me that police make those right choices day in and day out with no recognition. It's only when they make the wrong ones that they come to our attention.

The experience was enlightening. It gave me newfound respect, as it was intended to, for the judgments cops have to make in unstable moments.

But police are trained extensively in firearms and deadly force. I'm not a cop. I don't have what it takes, not an ounce of it.

And when a cop makes the wrong choice, there has to be accountability, no matter how much we understand the cop's dilemma.

To say so doesn't make you a cop-hater.
Firearms instructors Paul Coates and Robert Wagner ran the scenario again for me.
This time, the woman pulled a gun.
I fired. The first two shots missed. The second were nonfatal injuries.
But she'd already shot at me several times. I was no doubt wounded, if not dead. *

Philly Get's 10 Million While MLS Gets 47 Million?

2008-02-05T08:15:00.001-05:00

In a city where violent crime is a serious problem and 392 people were murdered in 2007 our wonderful Governor is sending in reinforcements in the form of $10 million to hire more police officers. This is a great thing and maybe they can start taking back the streets. The sad thing though, is that the very same Governor is spending $47 million to help fund a Major League Soccer stadium in nearby Chester PA. A city which has seen blight and urban decay for many years. The hope is that along with Harrah's the new stadium will bring economic growth to this area and stimulate some sort of change in the way people see their city. Haa! Real funny. One has to only look farther east to the Jersey shore to see how this won't happen. Most of Atlantic City is a cesspool of crime, violence, and poverty. The big money the state sees from taxes on the casino's bypasses Atlantic City and goes straight to Trenton, the same way the money from Harrah's bypasses Chester and goes right to Harrisburg.

This new stadium will not help the people who need it in Chester, sure there will be some construction jobs, but it won't be small operations who employ the locals it will be huge mega builders. They and their sub contractors will hire some of the locals for laborer positions and other non-skilled or semi-skilled positions but those positions won't last very long. Then once the stadium is open they might be able to get a job there. A one day a week in season job of some sorts, paying minimum wage. That won't help them get back on their feet for very long if at all. The stadium will only create full time jobs for a few fat cats with college degrees, and will only serve to funnel more money out of this already cash strapped city which by the way is putting their own $6 million into the deal as well.

In my uneducated opinion, the money situation needs to be reversed, how about $47 million to Philadelphia to control crime and boost the quality of live and the longevity of it's residents and $10 million or less to Chester for a stadium that most of the locals will visit without punching a time clock. So Governor Ed, how about something to really help the state before you leave office?

Only in PA!

2008-02-04T09:29:00.001-05:00

This could only happen in PA, what a mess we have made of our state. I guess they need this money to pay for the 45 Million the state will pay for the new soccer stadium!

Ronnie Polaneczky: Oh, brother!
A judge threatened a man with arrest if he didn't pay twin's 17-year-old traffic tix
Philadelphia Daily News
SINCE NOVEMBER, Edward Stanley Harris has been paying Philadelphia Traffic Court $100 per month on a bill of $1,811.50 for tickets issued 17 years ago - which the court has admitted aren't even his.

He's paying them off because, he says, a Traffic Court judge said he'd arrest him if he didn't.
Harris, a producer at CN8 Sports, has never been inside a prison cell, and he'd like to keep it that way. So he's writing those monthly checks to Traffic Court.

But he says it's not fair.
Gee, ya think?
This guy's story is one of the wackiest ones I've ever heard, with twists, turns, infuriating judges and - wait for it - a long-lost twin.

If this weren't Philly, you'd assume Harris made up his story.
Alas, this is Philly.

It all started on Aug. 8, 1967, when Edward Stanley Harris and his twin brother, Edwin Shelby Harris, were born. Some might question the wisdom of a mother giving her twin sons, who share the same birth date and home address, such similar names.

At least the kids weren't identical.
All was well until the period between October 1990 and May 1991, when Edwin received eight traffic tickets, on three separate occasions, for moving violations.

In September 1991, Edwin pleaded guilty in Traffic Court to the violations and was ordered to pay $1,501.
Edwin never paid. Over the next 17 years, he fell on hard times, drifted South and stayed in touch with Edward only sporadically.

In the fall of 1992, PennDOT's driver-licensing bureau notified Edward that his license would be suspended for nonpayment of tickets. Realizing that PennDOT had confused him with his twin, Edward went to Philadelphia Traffic Court to straighten things out. The court wrote PennDOT, confirming that the tickets belonged to Edwin, not Edward.

Thankfully, PennDOT withdrew the suspension threat.
Nonetheless, between November 1992 and June 2007, the routine repeated itself, like a scene from "Groundhog Day":
Every year or so, PennDOT re-discovered those same, unpaid tickets of Edwin's, decided they belonged to Edward, and threatened to suspend Edward's license. Each time, Edward returned to Traffic Court, and the suspension threat got lifted.

So Edward assumed the same annoying scenario would repeat itself last Nov. 21, when he took his latest license-suspension notice before Traffic Court Judge Willie Adams. According to Edward, Adams wouldn't listen to his saga or review the copious paperwork that Edward supplied to support his innocence.

Instead, Adams ordered Edward to pay off the tickets - the costs, with fees, had grown to $1,811.50 - at a rate of $100 a month. Edward filed a petition to appeal the decision but also started paying the monthly fee, since, he said, Adams threatened an arrest if he didn't.

Last Thursday, during Edward's appeal hearing at the Criminal Justice Center, the payment order against him was withdrawn. The sympathetic clerk there suggested that Edward go to Traffic Court to get his money back, as it's the only entity that can straighten things out.

And "Groundhog Day" began again.
OK, so it's understandable that PennDOT confused Edward and Edwin the first time. The guys share similar first names, and their middle initials, last name and birth dates are identical. They even shared the same address back in 1991, when they lived at home with their mom.

But there's no excuse for PennDOT's incompetence since then, nor Traffic Court's. As for Judge Adams, his actions are just baffling.

"I am very, very pissed," says Edward, now 40, who estimates that, over the last 17 years, he has made 20 trips to Traffic Court and has lost close to $3,000 in court fees and missed time from work.

"This could be solved if someone felt like fixing it," says Edward, who also has asked City Council members for help, to no avail. "I can't get anyone to care. My biggest fear is that I'll be pulled over for a broken taillight and someone will say my license is suspended and I'll lose my job," which routinely requires him to drive CN8 vehicles.

A staff person for Traffic Court's administrative judge, Bernice DeAngelis, said 10 days ago that the judge would look into Edward's plight. But despite my repeated calls to DeAngelis last week, only silence has come from her 8th and Spring Garden locale.

Nor could I reach Edward's brother, Edwin, at his last known phone number, to ask if he plans to pay off those old tickets any time soon. Y'know, given the nonsense they've caused his twin.

Then again, PennDOT and Philadelphia Traffic Court have had 17 years to fix this for Edward. Instead they keep going after him like he's his brother's keeper.

Or his brother's ATM.
"The people in Traffic Court do their best, but PennDOT is a bloodless bureaucracy, devoid of compassion," says Norristown lawyer and driver's-license expert Basil Beck III, whom I called for advice on Edward's behalf. "This guy needs a lawyer."

And a big, fat apology.
E-mail polaner@phillynews.com or call 215-854-2217. For recent columns:
http://go.philly.com/polaneczky

Best Buy Sued over Job Reference!

2008-01-29T13:36:00.000-05:00

Don't put anything in an e-mail that you don't want the whole world to know! Guess this guy will do OK, I think he's asking for way to little though! -Chuck

Ex-manager sues Best Buy over email
By Sam Wood
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
"If you can't say somethin' nice, don't say nothin' at all," a cartoon character once said.
He might have added: Especially in an email.
Stung by a scathing job reference, a South Jersey man filed a federal law suit last week claiming that Best Buy, his former employer, blackballed him.

Michael Oliveri, 47, said it was impossible to find a new job after he was fired in Aug. 2006 from Best Buy, the electronics megamart.

In his suit, Oliveri said he became suspicious after job offers at Circuit City and Target were abruptly terminated.
So Oliveri, of Columbus, Burlington County, hatched a plan.
He created an email account using the name of a Target employee. Then Oliveri sent a note to his former company asking for a "candidate reference."

According to Oliveri's lawsuit, the district human resources manager, Ann McCafferty, allegedly responded:
"I will give you the skinny on him but you can't say you got any info from best Buy or we can be sued. Just don't hire him and say you went with a better candidate.

"He was hired as GM and demoted after 12 months or so because he sucked. He is desperate for a job because supposedly his wife left him because he has no job. I would not touch him.

"Again, do not forward this email to anybody or say where you heard the info from because we were not allowed to give this info out, but I would hate you to get stuck with this guy!"

Needless to say, Oliveri did not get the job.
New Jersey law prohibits interference with a prospective employment relationship. Oliveri is seeking a minimum of $100,000 in damages, said his attorney, Katherine D. Hartman of Moorestown.

McCafferty was subsequently promoted and now works at Best Buy corporate headquarters in Minnesota.
The companies legal team is reviewing the case, a spokeswoman said.
"There's not a lot we can say other than we're investigating it," said company spokeswoman Dawn Bryant.
Oliveri was hired in 2004 as general manager of the Best Buy's Wilmington store and later worked at the Plymouth Meeting branch.

The suit was filed Jan. 22 in U.S. District Court in Camden.

God Speed John Moyse

2008-01-26T19:49:00.000-05:00

Today, I went back to the homefront for a viewing for a fellow firefighter from my junior firefighter days. He was also a police officer with my father and the uncle of a girl I used to date. John was a great guy, a Marine, a Firefighter, and a Police Detective. He will truly be missed but now he is at peace and no longer suffering. Rest Easy Brother.

While in the hometown I shot a photo of my old house. It seems so much smaller than I remember it, the neighborhood in general even seems smaller. Many of the old neighbors are still there but I didn't stop.

Old School Engine Ride

2008-01-25T18:49:00.000-05:00

This is borrowed from a fellow firefighter. I especially liked this because I have many fond memories of riding this great old engine. This was back in the day of back step riding which is great. The only thing better was riding standing up in the jump seat of an engine. I miss those days, yes we are safer inside but it's just not as cool as feeling the air in your face and seeing and smelling the fire before you even arrive! Those days are over for good now though.

Unpaid Bill Leads to Violence!

2008-01-16T10:41:00.001-05:00

People wonder how so many young people are turning out to be thugs & animals. With role models like this it's no wonder!

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=5886403&status=ok

January 15, 2008 -- In a case that boggles the minds of investigators, a husband and wife were being held at police headquarters along with their 18-year-old daughter.

Authorities said they and another daughter accosted, punched and kicked a 17-year-old family friend over an unpaid cell phone bill.

Eighteen-year-old Tiesha Lewis and 17-year-old Elisane Fortune were the best of friends. So close that Lewis put her on her family's cell phone plan. Their families had a great relationship.

"Before this, we were close. The girls would do the homework together, everything," said the victim's father, Romilo Fortune.

But recently the Lewis family became upset over some money that Elisane owed for the cell phone plan, which the Fortune family had agree to pay.

"I owe T-mobile $20. My mother was going to finish paying that off, so I guess they didn't," said Elisane.
Even though the Fortunes had agreed to pay the twenty dollars, police said Teisha Lewis along with her mother Carmeyo, her father Curtis Sherwood and her 16-year-old sister drove to Martin Luther King High School and jumped Elisane Fortune at the intersection of Stenton and Walnut Lane.

"They had me on the ground kicking me and stuff. I thought I was going to faint," said Elisane.
She was rushed to Einstein Medical Center with cuts and bruises, including a bruised knee.
"When I got there, I saw blood on her face everywhere. I see blood everywhere," said Romilo.
Community activist Ricardo Sebastian said kids are always fighting over one thing or another.
"But when you have the parent getting involved and kicking the child like a dog, that's totally unquestionably, unpopular," said Sebastian.

The three members of the Lewis family were being held at police headquarters awaiting their arraignment on charges of assault and related offenses. The 16-year-old was placed in juvenile detention.

Authorities said the father, Curtis Sherwood, was already on probation for another crime.

Gotta Love Living in a Commonwealth!

2008-01-15T07:41:00.001-05:00

This is why I love to live in PA! The townships have so much power and the township officials are free to enforce the rules anyway they see fit. They really should just leave these folks alone.

A tough spot for animal lovers NEW GARDEN ORDERS TREE TOP ANIMAL RESCUE TO SHUT DOWN By Dan Kristie, Staff Writer
NEW GARDEN - Laurellen and George Treisner thought they were doing a good deed when in 2006 they began operating an animal rescue out of their home.

But township officials are demanding they shut down Tree Top Animal Rescue because it doesn't conform to zoning law.
The Treisners own 7.3 acres in an R-1, light residential district. The zoning law says nothing specifically about animal shelters but specifies R-1 properties may be used only for one purpose. Therefore township officials decided the Triesners' property would violate the zoning if it was used for both an animal shelter and a residence.

Township Zoning Officer Don Suckstorf sent the Treisners a cease-and-desist order on Dec. 21 after the couple applied to the township for permission to build a barn they indicated would be used for agriculture. Although agriculture is allowed in R-1 districts, zoning doesn't permit a single property to be used for both agriculture and housing, officials say.

In an interview last week, the Treisners said the barn wouldn't be used for agriculture. Instead, they said, it would house 10 pygmy goats they keep as pets and occasionally be used as a temporary shelter for animals waiting to be adopted.

In two letters sent to the Treisners, Suckstorf said the couple must either dismantle the barn and shut down the animal shelter or apply to the township's zoning hearing board for a variance that would allow them to keep the barn standing and the shelter in operation.

The Treisners said they'd rather not go before the zoning hearing board, especially because of the cost to apply for a hearing.

"We shouldn't need a variance," Laurellen Treisner said. "To apply for a hearing we need to pay $1,400. Do you know how many dogs and cats $1,400 could save?"

Instead, the Treisners plan to take their case to the Jan. 14 township supervisors meeting.
Treetop is a nonprofit effort, and the Treisners said no neighbors have complained about it. They said it operates by using the Internet to connect people who want to get rid of animals with people who want to adopt or foster them. So far, they said, Treetop has rescued 95 animals.

Rarely do animals stay on their property, the Treisners said, and if they do, they're only there for hours, awaiting the arrival of the people who will adopt or foster them.

The 10 pygmy goats that were supposed to take up residence in the barn are family pets that George Treisner said "have a lot of personality and are fun to watch."

The Treisners described their interactions with the township officials as unpleasant.
Township officials "won't tell us why" they want to stop the rescue, Laurellen Treisner said. "They also told us we can't use the computer or the phone on our property for our animal rescue. I don't know on what grounds they can tell us to do that."

But Township Manager Carmen Raddi said officials did not tell the Treisners to stop using the phone and Internet for their rescue.

"No, no, no, no," Raddi said. "We never said that. Tell them to provide a letter that says that."
"Well, they did say that," Laurellen Treisner responded. "They said that in conversation."
The Treisners said their animal rescue should be considered a "no-impact business," which is defined in the zoning ordinance as a business that, among other criteria, does not generate more traffic than a normal residence.

But the zoning ordinance doesn't say that no-impact businesses are allowed in R-1 districts. In fact, it doesn't say no-impact businesses are allowed in any district. The definition appears in the beginning of the zoning ordinance, along with many other definitions that are never mentioned again. "Adult bookstore" is one such definition.

But no matter what the township says, the Treisners said they will figure out a way to continue operating Treetop Animal Rescue.

"If I have to take my laptop computer and sit in a Starbucks to conduct my business, that's fine," Laurellen Treisner said.

"We only have one filing cabinet with two drawers we use for Treetop," George Treisner said. "We have a good relationship with a pet shop in Kennett. If we take it there, would that be enough?"

To contact staff writer Dan Kristie, send an e-mail to dkristie@dailylocal.com

God Speed Major Olmsted

2008-01-08T10:52:00.001-05:00

We've lost another fine American Hero to the War. God Speed Brother, until we meet again on Fiddler's Green.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/jan/05/just-devastating-news/

Note: You have to scroll down a bit to read this story.

2007 in Review

2008-01-01T12:05:00.000-05:00

Wow, 2007 was an interesting and sometimes scary year for us. It started quietly with a quiet New Years eve at home which is our usual. Work was slower since we were done our inspections but I was preparing for my turn in the sandbox. Then on Jan 12th Vicki had pain in her jaws that wouldn’t go away. Finally we called 911 and the paramedics advised us that she should go to Christiana Hospital. So off she went by ambulance to the hospital. The doctors there quickly checked things over, confirmed a heart attack and whisked her off to the cardiac cath lab within 45 minutes of our arrival. They ended up putting several stents in her heart and keeping her for a few days. Then after she was sent home we had a few appointments with various doctors but she recovered well.
April Fool’s day found me leaving home and heading to Baltimore Washington Airport to catch the “Patriot Express” to Manas AB in Bishkek Kyrgyzstan. We stopped in Germany and Turkey along the way before arriving at Manas. There we got more gear and awaited for military transportation to Afghanistan. Our first leg took us to Bagram AB then finally to my final destination, Kandahar Air Base in Southern Afghanistan. This would be my home for 30 days. It was a very different world than the one I had left just a few days prior, we carried our rifles everywhere, at night we were required to don body armor and Kevlar helmet if we were outside, and it was dusty, very dusty. My job was to take care of the computer network along with several other folks, mostly active air force with a couple of other guard people. Our commander was from the ANG in Pittsburgh PA so that was interesting. We survived several rocket attacks on the base and were kept on our toes by our Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) folks who had a bad habit of forgetting to warn everyone when they were going to blow stuff up! The trip home was eventful with stops in several countries, break downs, and even smoke in the cockpit which required an emergency landing complete with fire trucks in Turkey. I met some great people along the way though and was finally home on May 11th, and was able to celebrate our anniversary on the 15th.
May found Vicki back in the hospital, this time at Chester County, a routine trip to the cardiologist for an echo cardiogram became a bit more. She told him she had been having chest pains so he advised her that he wanted her checked out. So because he is affiliated with Chester County Hospital we went over there to the ER. We waited forever and she finally got a room later in the evening. The next day they did a cardiac cath and found that her stents had blocked up. They wanted to do a bypass but we said NO WAY! We had her transported to Christiana again and they were able to restent her. During this period though they found that she had some blockages in her legs. So on Oct 26th she had stents put in both legs and they found the aorta was blocked but they didn’t have the correct stent for it. So on Dec 18th they went back in again but found that the blockage had mostly disappeared which they attribute to the legs being opened and helping the flow. So now she is feeling a bit better and walking better.
The summer found us busy around the house, working around the pool and other places to do a few things we had wanted to do to make it more functional and to make it look much better. We made a couple trips to Roots Market in Lancaster, made it to the Cecil County Fair, the PA German Festival, and the PA Renaissance Faire. We found some good stuff on Freecycle and we able to have several yard sales to rid ourselves of some of our accumulated junk.
For Halloween we once again made our way to The Bates Motel, this time we brought my parents, my step sister, and her son with us for a good scare. They are great folks and offered a military appreciation night so we were all able to get in for ½ price. Thanksgiving found us hosting the family and my parents were here too which is a big change, normally they are in warmer climates by the end of Oct. Christmas was at my step sisters and they were there too, then they left for Florida on the 26th. Our new years eve was once again a quiet one.
We hope the new year brings you and your family a blessed time and all of your hopes and dreams are fulfilled. This will be another interesting year for us I am sure.

83% Burned Out!

2007-12-22T07:18:00.001-05:00

WOW! Maybe I can take a sabbatical and take the loss off my taxes as health related!

You Are 83% Burned Out

You are extremely burned out.

You work too hard, and you're not getting the results you deserve.

It's time for a life change, as soon as you can manage it.

You're giving away most of your energy to something you don't even enjoy.

Are You Burned Out?

The Gratitude Campaign

2007-12-14T08:21:00.001-05:00

This is a great site and a nice video. Please spread the word about the gratitude campaign.

http://gratitudecampaign.org/index.php

Frivilous Lawsuit!

2007-11-27T16:10:00.001-05:00

What a crock, her no good son shoots one officer and later tries to shoot several others before he is shot and killed and now she feels they used exessive force? Maybe they should have just let him run away so he could try to kill someone else or so he could have more time before the next shootout to better arm himself so he could kill more cops. Her attorney should be disbarred for even bringing this suit to the court, 3 separate investigations by The Lancaster County DA, The State of PA, and the Dept of Justice all ruled the shooting justifiable yet she feels it's her turn at a huge payout because she raised a son who was scumbag!

http://local.lancasteronline.com/4/212940

Mom sues over shootout death
Son killed in November 2005 gunfight with police. Federal lawsuit claims authorities used "excessive and unjustified deadly force."

By TOM MURSE, Staff
Lancaster New Era
Published: Nov 27, 2007 11:49 AM EST
LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. - The mother of a 23-year-old Lititz man shot and killed by law-enforcement officers in a November 2005 gun battle has filed a federal lawsuit claiming the police used "excessive and unjustified deadly force."

Sandra Faust, of Reno, Nev., also claims in the suit that she has suffered financial damages and "severe emotional distress/mental anguish" following what she alleges was the wrongful death of her son, Daniel. And she claims police "intentionally slandered" her son, after his death, by linking him to a June 2005 shooting near a Taco Bell on Lincoln Highway East. She is seeking in excess of $150,000 on each of eight counts against 19 separate defendants.

Faust was shot and killed in a southern Lancaster County farm field shortly before noon on Nov. 8, 2005. He had fled to the farm after shooting a Lititz police officer who tried to arrest him at home on outstanding warrants for resisting arrest and fleeing and eluding a police officer.

The officer, Jevon Miller, was shot in his right armpit after confronting Faust in his driveway at 63 Heron Road. The wound was so serious, and so close to his spine, the surgeon who operated on Miller chose not to remove the bullet. The officer returned to duty only four months later.

Three subsequent investigations - conducted by the district attorney, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Pennsylvania State Police - found law enforcement officers were justified in shooting Faust.

And in a later search of Faust's home, police recovered a shotgun, two rifles, several rounds of ammunition and a journal, according to the district attorney's report.

"In that journal, Faust identified a number of 'things to do before I die.' Those objectives included 'shoot up a car,' 'kill a man' and 'get shot,'" Totaro wrote in the report.

This morning, Totaro restated that law enforcement officers were justified in using deadly force.

"The evidence very clearly established that Daniel Faust shot one police officer and was pointing a gun at other officers when those officers discharged their weapons," Totaro said.

"Mr. Faust did not respond to police authority and presented a grave risk of death or serious bodily injury to the lives of others," Totaro said. "Under the law, police were justified in their use of deadly force, and I am confident the county will vigorously contest this frivolous lawsuit."

"There are so many questions about this case that have the family disturbed, and that's why they went forward on this case," said Mrs. Faust's attorney, Philip J. Berg, of Lafayette Hill. He said the $150,000 is an amount that guarantees the case will be heard at the federal level.

"We're seeking in excess of that. But no amount of money can compensate for the loss of a loved one," he said.

Mrs. Faust filed the suit Nov. 7 in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia. She is the court-appointed administrator of her son's estate. Among the 19 defendants are eight law-enforcement officers - including Miller - five police agencies, four municipalities and Totaro and his office.

Specifically named as defendants are Lancaster City and its police department; the Pennsylvania State Police; Warwick Township and its police department; Lititz Borough and its police department; the West Lampeter Township Police Department; Lititz police officers Miller and Stephen Detz; Warwick Township Officer David Burdis; state police Cpl. Joseph Christaldi; state police Trooper Ariel Torres; Deputy U.S. Marshal Alan Stifler; now-retired Lancaster city police Detective Thomas Kiss; and West Lampeter Township police Detective Jere Schuler.

Miller, Detz and Burdis, dressed in plain clothes, surrounded Faust's truck when he pulled into his driveway around 12:45 a.m. Nov. 8. They ordered Faust out of the vehicle and told him he was under arrest, but Faust remained in his truck and locked the doors.

The officers told Faust if he did not comply, they would break a window. Faust still refused to comply, according to Totaro's findings.

"Miller struck the driver window with his ... baton, and as he was clearing the broken glass from the edges of the window, he observed a muzzle flash and heard a popping noise," the report says. "Miller then felt a stinging sensation in his arm and under his armpit. At that moment, he realized he had been shot and saw he was bleeding."

Faust fled, prompting a massive manhunt. Shortly before 11 a.m., police received a tip that Faust was hiding at 1211 Penny Road in Drumore Township. Lancaster city police Detective Kiss and Deputy U.S. Marshal Stifler arrived and staked out the residence.

State police Cpl. Christaldi and state police Trooper Torres saw Faust emerge from a patch of tall grass with a revolver in his hand, the report says. Faust ran, and Christaldi got out of the cruiser and ran after him while Torres pursued Faust in the cruiser.

"Faust then stopped running, turned towards Christaldi, and pointed his weapon in Christaldi's direction. Torres exited his car and gave Faust a number of verbal commands to drop his weapon. Faust refused to do so," Totaro's report reads.

"As Faust was pointing his gun at officers in an attempt to get a shot at them, Torres heard shots being fired by Christaldi. Torres did not know whether Faust fired a shot. However, Torres did recall that when he went to his cruiser for a shotgun, he heard a gunshot that was distinctly different from the others. He then saw Stifler fire a number of shots at Faust. Once Faust dropped his weapon, Torres ran up and kicked the gun away."

An analysis showed that Faust fired two shots. An autopsy found Faust had been struck by five bullets - all front to back, meaning Faust was facing the guns that were fired at him.

Six months after Faust's death, police in West Lampeter Township said he was responsible for the shooting of a 2-year-old boy, Pedro Melendez Jr., in June 2005 near a Taco Bell restaurant.

"If Dan Faust was alive today, I would be charging him," Detective Jere Schuler told the Intelligencer Journal. "He has been identified as the shooter."

Mrs. Faust disputed the allegations, saying her son was at home the night of the child's shooting. In her suit, she noted that her son never confessed to the crime and claims police haven't linked the bullet exclusively to her son's weapon.

Thanksgiving 2007

2007-11-22T13:50:00.001-05:00

Vicki & I attended the Boscov's Thanksgiving Day parade in Philadelphia today. The weather was wondeful with temps in the high 50's to low 60's and plenty of sunshine so it was a perfect day for a parade. This was a change as other years it's been very cold or rainy or both. It was a great day and the only thing that could have made it better was if the few officers from Phila PD had done their jobs w/out racism. We arrived an hour before the parade started so we could get a good seat where Vicki could sit in her wheel chair and still see. It was a great spot and there were others sitting there as well. Once the parade started a few people moved in front of us but the one officer moved them away. Then the officers shifted and another officer moved down to our area. She wasn't paying much attention and more people moved in, so we all moved forward, she and another officer moved us all back and moved a few people so we could see. This went on and as long as white people tried to stand there they were moved but if anyone black stood or sat in the way it was fine. We politely asked them to move then asked her but she did nothing about it. So hopefully she will enjoy the investigation when the complaints are filed against her this week by several people. But we will not let this ruin our holiday.

Today we give thanks for many things, for friends, family, our health, our country, or whatever may be important to us. I am thankful for my family being with me this day, for the wonderful food we will eat, and for the freedom to enjoy it all. I am very thankful that my wife is still here with us, and that my family is in the area this year. What are you thankful for?

Auction Licenses for Ebay?

2007-11-19T11:20:00.001-05:00

Once again Big Brother steps on the little guy. PA now wants anyone who sells things for others on ebay to get an Auctioneers License from the state! Their next deal will probably have the state police spending hours scouring ebay for PA based sellers and checking for business licenses! What a joke this is! PA needs to join the 21st century!

Check It Out!

Veteran's Day 2007

2007-11-11T13:41:00.000-05:00

Today, November 11th 2007 is Veteran’s day, a day which seems to mean so little to so many in this country. To most it’s another holiday where the banks are closed and the kids are off from school. To some it’s a chance to pickup bargains at the local big box store or mall. To those of us who have served and our families and close friends it’s another day all together. Veteran’s Day is a time to remember those who have served a greater cause than themselves, a grateful nation, and the freedom of those who seem to appreciate it the least.
This Veteran’s Day has a special meaning for me, having returned in May from a short deployment to Afghanistan I remember those who I served with and those who’s ramp ceremonies I attended. I was proud to honor those fallen warriors regardless of how hot it was on that concrete or how early in the morning it was. I was proud to serve amongst such great people.
So today, please take a moment to thank a Vet for the things that you enjoy, for your ability to decide if you want to go to work or not, for your ability to shop and buy most anything you wish, and for the very freedom that allows you to read this and me to write it without censorship or fear of being hauled off to some secret prison and tortured. The United States may not be a perfect utopia but it’s a whole hell of a sight better than many other places in this world.

How It's Made

2007-11-10T15:09:00.000-05:00

This is a really cool video on how a leather fire helmet is made.

Halloween 2007

2007-10-29T20:16:00.001-04:00

We are all decorated for halloween. The pumpkin above is a huge white pumpkin we got for a great price at a local farm market. Here are some photos of our front porch.

God Speed Brothers

2007-10-24T15:24:00.001-04:00

Today I said goodbye to 28 of my fellow airman who will deploy to the land of sand for 6 months or longer. These members of the 166 Security Forces Squadron from here in DE will be working with our Army brothers in the sandbox and will be in harms way. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Angry Comca$t Customer Smashes Offices!

2007-10-19T13:32:00.001-04:00

I think we have all wanted to do this at one time or another!

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071019/NEWS/71019033

Angry Comcast customer smashes offices with hammer
Associated Press
Posted Friday, October 19, 2007 at 12:33 pm
BRISTOW, Va. - It may not have been legal, but a 75-year-old Virginia woman dealt a blow to poor customer service when she took a hammer to her local Comcast office.

Mona Shaw and her husband, Don, waited all day for the cable company to come at the appointed time one Monday in August to install Comcast's heavily advertised Triple Play phone, Internet and cable service in their Bristow home. Nobody came.

A Comcast technician showed up two days later, but left without finishing the setup, the couple said. Two days after that, Comcast cut off all service to the Shaw home.

When the Shaws went to the Comcast office in Manassas that Friday to complain to a manager, a representative asked them to sit outside, saying someone would be right with them. After two hours of sitting and waiting, the same representative leaned out the door to inform them that the manager had left for the day.

Shaw, a churchgoing secretary of the local AARP branch, returned the next Monday - with a hammer.

"I smashed a keyboard, knocked over a monitor ... and I went to hit the telephone," Shaw said. "I figured, 'Hey, my telephone is screwed up, so is yours.'"

Within no time, the police showed up and Shaw was in cuffs. She was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct for the Aug. 20 incident.

She received a three-month suspended sentence, had to pay a $345 fine, and is barred from going near the Comcast offices for a year.

"Truly a unique and inappropriate situation," said Comcast spokeswoman Beth Bacha. "Nothing justifies this sort of dangerous behavior."

Comcast also disputes Shaw's version of her service record with them.

Contacted Friday, Shaw said she doesn't regret what she did.

"I stand by my actions even more so after getting all these telephone calls and hearing other people's complaints," she said.

Many people have called her a hero, she added.

"But no, I'm just an old lady who got mad. I had a hissy fit," she said.

The Shaws did eventually get phone and television service - with Verizon and DirecTV.

Halloween Attraction

2007-10-18T18:55:00.000-04:00

Last nite we went to The Bates Motel for a halloween scare. It was even better than last year and we took my parents, my stepsister and her son. We all had a great time and will be back next year.

The great thing is the Bate's brothers who run this awesome attraction think alot of our military folks so last nite was Military Appreciation Nite and all military and vets got 1/2 off the ticket price. These guys are the best so if you are in my area please check out The Bates Motel and get the scare of your life!

Sell Candles or No Prom for You!

2007-10-16T15:50:00.001-04:00

This is wrong. I didn't go to either of my proms but that was my choice, I wasn't into things like that plus I went to Vo-Tech 1/2 day so I could have cared less. This is just poor planning on the schools part, just because there is a record number of students and the venue can't handle it then change the venue! It's not like there were an additional 300 kids who just showed up at school last month! What do you think???

EMMAUS, Pa. (AP) - October 16, 2007 - Students at one Lehigh County high school who want to go to their junior prom have more to worry about than getting an outfit and lining up a date. They may also have to sell $60 worth of candles to even get a ticket.

Organizers of the Emmaus High School prom say not all of the record 721 juniors can attend the May 3 prom because there isn't enough room at the venue, the Days Inn and Conference Center in South Whitehall Township.

So, the school is holding a fundraiser to help decide who will be allowed to go. Students who sell at least $60 worth of Yankee Candles by Friday will be able to buy tickets before they go on sale to the rest of the class. The two highest sellers will get a pair of free tickets.

To some students, the plan is about as appealing as a smashed corsage.
"We're juniors, we've been looking forward to this for a long time and it turns out we have to do even more just to get it," said Dylan Swanson, 16, of Alburtis.

Physics teacher Brent Ohl and biology instructor Corinna Kramer-Hinks, the class advisers, said they couldn't find a location that can accommodate everyone at the prom along with a disc jockey, dance floor, appetizer table and enough chairs and tables.

"We don't feel it's fair either, but we're doing the best we can," Kramer-Hinks said.
Michele Grasso of Lower Macungie Township, whose 17-year-old son is a junior at the school, said she understands that the school district is dealing with a population boom, but it shouldn't affect what she views as a rite of passage.

"Everybody I told said they've never heard anything as ridiculous as this in their life," Grasso said. "There should be room for every single kid to go."

Grasso also said it's unfair to ask the students to sell $60 worth of candles, especially since they aren't guaranteed a spot even if they do meet the quota. But Emmaus Principal David Piperato disagreed.

"I think it's fair to ask kids to demonstrate their commitment to their class and to fundraise for the class," he said. "And those who demonstrate that commitment should have the first opportunity."

Awesome Read!

2007-10-15T11:09:00.001-04:00

Not surprisingly most of the media outlets have not picked up on the story of Lt Murphy receiving the Medal of Honor. I guess receiving the countries highest award for valor in action against an enemy force is not as important as Al Gore, Brittney's kids, Lindsey's addiction, or other crap! This guy is from Long Island and even the NY Times hasn't picked it up because the war isn't PC anymore!

President Bush will present the medal to Lt Murphy's parents on Oct 22nd @ 1430.

Also to my fireservice brothers this man carried a patch from 53 Engine & 43 Truck in his pocket while deployed as a symbol of why he was there and what he was doing.

http://www.newsday.com/news/specials/ny-murphy-seal-sg,0,6675676.storygallery

Navy Time Article - http://www.navytimes.com/news/2007/10/navy_seal_moh_071011w/

Stellar Parenting!

2007-10-12T11:49:00.001-04:00

This is some stellar parenting skills! Mom buys the 14yo boy 3 firearms and he is allowed unrestricted access to them! I am very pro gun but only for adult, children need to be supervised when handling guns and other dangerous devices! I hope mom gets the same sentence then kid gets on this. She obviously just takes the easy way out and lets him do whatever he wants. The sad thing about our laws is if you are arrested for abusing an animal they will take away your privledge of owning any animal for 10 years but if they take your children you can get pregnant the next day and start all over again! Also, in PA you need a license to cut hair but anyone can have a bunch of kids and screw up their lives!

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=local&id=5703381

Teen Amassed Weapons Cache

2007-10-11T16:10:00.001-04:00

I think Mom should be locked up on this one!

Threat at Local School Thwarted
by The Action News Team
PLYMOUTH TOWNSHIP, Pa. - October 11, 2007 - A home-schooled teenager is accused of plotting a Columbine-type attack on a local high school. Authorities said he felt bullied, amassed a cache of weapons and tried to recruit another boy for the attack.

During a late morning news conference, Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor displayed the weapons that were taken from the teen's home.

The weapons included a 9 mm assault rifle that the teenager's mother had recently bought for him, Castor said. Prosecutors are reviewing her actions.

Police also found about 30 air-powered guns, plus swords, knives, hand grenades, a bomb-making book, videos of the 1999 Columbine attack in Colorado and violence-filled notebooks, Castor said. The weapons were plainly visible in the boy's bedroom, Castor said.

The search did not turn up any ammunition for the most dangerous firearm, the assault rifle. Authorities said one grenade was operable and three others were still being assembled.

"I do not think an attack was imminent," said Castor. "I am not certain that an attack was going to occur at all."
"It could have simply been big talking by a kid who thought that he was bullied previously and he was going to exact his revenge," Castor added.

Also on display were two books that the boy had, a copy of "The Anarchist Cookbook" and a copy of "Hitler's Second Book: The Unpublished Sequel to Mein Kampf."

While Action News crews were at the school, dozens of students left the school this morning. Parents came to pick up many of them, but school officials say classes were never formally dismissed at the Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School.

The teen previously attended middle school in the district but had been taught at home for more than a year after voluntarily leaving school, Castor said.

Plymouth Township police searched the home after getting a tip Wednesday from a high school student and his father.
The teen was charged as a juvenile with solicitation to commit terror and other counts and was being held at a youth facility.

The following is the text of an e-mail alert that was sent out from the school district Thursday morning:

" Plymouth Township Police have a 14-year-old boy in custody who was reportedly planning a "Columbine" type event at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School (PWHS). The youth was not enrolled at the school. Police acted quickly on the tip of a current PWHS student and his father. Police further indicated that the school and its students were never in danger.

Police went to the residence of the student and received consent to search the home. Officer's found various weapons and the juvenile was taken into custody.

Police are confident that the incident is isolated to this individual and no threat to the school and/or students exists.

School District administrators continue to work with local law enforcement to ensure the safety of all Colonial School District students and staff.

Halloween Decorations

2007-10-10T17:55:00.000-04:00

We are getting ready for halloween even though we don't get trick or treaters down our way. We still enjoy decorating especially since we are on a main road w/ lots of traffic. We got a mask free on Freecycle and bought a tube of fake blood for a buck a Wallyworld. So we have a grand total of a buck invested in a really cool decoration which is sure to turn heads! Let me know what you think!

Dude, You Stepped In It!

2007-10-09T10:06:00.001-04:00

So yesterday while running errands we came across an accident. No EMS or Police were there yet so I turned around and stopped to render assistance. One young woman had cut her knee and was shaken up from the whole incident. He car was probably totalled as well. I walked up with my crash bag to check on her and she was talking to her boyfriend or husband on the phone (I am not sure I didn't look for a ring). She was telling him that she had totalled her car and hurt her knee but he wasn't going to come to the scene or to the hospital so she called her mother instead! I kept thinking, "Dude, you stepped in it big time" He won't live that down for a long while and if I was her I'd dump his butt!

Things are still crazy here so I'm not blogging much but keep watching and maybe even commenting now and then to let me know that people are still reading my blog!

Rest Easy Brother

2007-09-30T19:49:00.000-04:00

On Saturday September 29th 19yo Firefighter Mike Regan on the Sharon Hill Fire Company in Delaware County PA died from injuries he sustained while operating at a garage fire in Sharon Hill on the night of Wed Sept 26th. Mike was serious injured by a collapse of a wall after the fire had been brought under control. His brave fight lasted several days but his injuries proved too severe. A full firefighters funeral will be held on Friday Oct 5th.

Condolences may be offered Here

Information on his death is Here Here and Here

Information on the fire is Here

Sharon Hill Fire Company Website

REST EASY MY BROTHER!

Inspirational Video!

2007-09-28T05:57:00.001-04:00

This is awesome!

9/11 Six Years Later

2007-09-11T08:00:00.001-04:00

It's been 6 years since that fateful day in 2001, in those six years we have seen a lot of changes in our country and the world. Many of those changes have been good, many have been bad, but change is an inevitable thing. One thing that has changed is that most people have gone back to their normal lives and most only think about September 11^th in passing and most have forgotten the significance of the events of that day on our country, our families, and our way of life.

To those who lost family and friends on that day, it will never be just another day, to those of us in the fire service and in the military will never ever forget that fateful day. While our memories will fade, they will not forget the tragedy of that day and the loss of our brothers and sisters in uniform.

It seems to me that many people in America have forgotten the real events of that day; they have forgotten that it was a blatant and unprovoked attack on America, our people and our very way of life. Today we are no better off than we were before that day. Many people still go about their daily business with blinders on and are more concerned with the latest on Lindsay Lohan or Brittney Spears, than they are about the war on terror, the well being of their neighbor, or the events in the Middle East.

In the days following September 11^th 2001 our citizens stood proud and strong, they displayed the flag, they helped each other, and they gave of themselves without expecting anything in return. They acted like our grandparents generation did. That spirit quickly subsided as most went back to being the self centered jerks that they were before 9/11. Today, you don't see many flags flying from peoples homes, you don't see much support for anything unless it's a chance to look good in front of the neighbors or co-workers, and we have people who blatantly disrespect our flag, our country and the lives of the men and women who defend it on a constant basis.

I stand up for that freedom every day that I put on my uniform and I have sworn an oath to defend everyone's right to criticize our President, to peacefully assemble in protest, and to have their voices heard. That does not mean that I have to like it, or that I can't provide my voice to the mix as well. The anti-war protests solve nothing and only serve as ammunition for our enemy to show the world how wrong we are for being involved and to reduce morale amongst the brave men and women fighting to give the very freedom we take for granted to a group of people who have known nothing but oppression for their entire lives. Yet, still the people show up and the media makes it big news. Yet each day a mother and father miss their son or daughter who is deployed or a wife misses her husband and he misses seeing his son's first steps or hearing his first word because he is once again deployed in harms way.

Our Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen are accomplishing extraordinary fetes every single day in the war. They are saving lives, removing very bad people from areas where they intend to harm anyone and everyone who do not agree with them 100%, and who seek only to enslave those under them. They are providing stability and training the local people to standup and take care of themselves. Yet they are supposed to accomplish this monumental task in a couple of years with only a handful of resources and a single mistake. The people of Afghanistan and Iraq have not known freedom or self governance for their entire lives, yet those who have no experience in this sort of thing want it to happen overnight. Governing a country which has been controlled by militants and religious fanatics for the past 40 years and where these people still exist and still wish to take back the power which has been stripped away is not for the faint of heart or for the inexperienced. It's not so easy a Caveman can do it!

In America if you are elected Mayor of your city or town and you totally mess things up, maybe the town will lose some money, maybe a few people might even lose their jobs depending on the size of the city or town. In Afghanistan or Iraq if you are mayor of your particular town or village you stand a good chance of being assassinated, if you fail to control your town then militants move in, kill as many of your citizens as necessary to accomplish their goal of instilling fear into the hearts and minds of everyone else in the town, take over, and establish a base of operations where they can do the same thing to surrounding villages and where they can plan for and stage before conducing terrorist operations against anyone who disagrees with them or who they see as the enemy. To become an elected official and to implicate peaceful change in these countries is an act of faith and courage that few if any politicians in this country would be able to do.

So I ask that you take a moment on this day and reflect on what happened on this day in 2001 and ask yourself one simple question. Am I living a life that is worthy of the sacrifice that so many American's made on that day?

Please take a moment to read this letter to the NY Daily Time From Dennis Smith. Dennis is a retired FDNY Firefighter, a gifted author and the founder of Firehouse Magazine.

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2007/09/10/2007-09-10_the_anger_never_dies.html

This is Why They Call it Dope!

2007-09-07T09:50:00.001-04:00

Outside court, two arrested on cocaine charges
By TERRI SANGINITI, The News Journal
Posted Friday, September 7, 2007 at 7:54 am
A traffic stop in Hares Corner led to two drug arrests, New Castle County police said Thursday.
Police arrested Christopher Martin, 20, and Larry Harris, 22, on charges of possession with intent to deliver cocaine, maintaining a vehicle for keeping a controlled substance, conspiracy and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Police stopped Martin after he drove his vehicle out of the Hares Corner Justice of the Peace Court into Parkway Circle at 4:40 p.m. Wednesday.
Martin and his passenger, Harris, were taken out of the vehicle and a police dog alerted officers to possible drugs in the front wheel area, said agency spokesman Cpl. Trinidad Navarro.
A search of the vehicle uncovered multiple packages of crack cocaine hidden in the car's engine compartment, Navarro said.
When the officers took the two into custody, police learned that Harris had just left a meeting with his probation officer.
A search warrant was issued for Harris' home in the 200 block of Guilford Street in Bear, where police found additional drug paraphernalia, Navarro said.
Arraignment and bail information were not available.

WOMAN FACES DRUG CHARGES: A 35-year-old Maryland woman was arrested on drug charges early Tuesday after she was found sleeping in a stolen car in the parking lot of the Delaware Service Plaza on I-95 near Newark. State police charged Danah Sayers, of Bel Air, with receiving stolen property, possession of heroin, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a hypodermic needle. Sayers was committed to the Baylor Women's Correctional Institution after failing to post a $5,500 bond. State police spokesman Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said a trooper stopped at the service plaza about 1:20 a.m. to check for suspicious activity. As the trooper conducted routine registration checks of the vehicles parked there looking for stolen vehicles, he came across a 1994 Dodge Intrepid with a New York license plate that was reported stolen Friday. When the trooper approached the car, he saw a female sleeping inside. She was identified as Sayers. Syringes, razor blades and heroin were found in the vehicle, Whitmarsh said.

MARIJUANA ARREST: A Bear woman was arrested Tuesday after police seized more than 450 grams of marijuana hidden in her car. Angela Wilkins of the Fairwinds Trailer Park was charged with receiving a stolen car and possession of marijuana after New Castle County police spotted a 1999 Mazda 626, which had been reported stolen, in front of her mobile home. When an officer searched the car before calling a tow truck, he discovered a gallon-sized plastic bag containing 455.25 grams of marijuana in the trunk, said New Castle County police spokesman Cpl. Trinidad Navarro. The officer then asked the resident of the mobile home, Wilkins, 28, whether the car was hers. Wilkins said it was, but she had not had a chance to register it, Navarro said. When the officer said he had found marijuana in it, Wilkins said she had purchased the car the night before, but would not say from whom, Navarro said. Wilkins was committed to Baylor Women's Correctional Institution in lieu of $3,000 bail.

Awesome Video's

2007-08-17T20:58:00.000-04:00

Here is a great video. He talks a little fast so you have to listen well but what this Marine says sums it all up!

This awesome video is of USAF Pararescue members doing a HALO (High Altitude Low Opening) jump from the back of a C-130 Aircraft. As I have said before, these guys are the quiet professionals, at least the ones I had the pleasure of spending time with on my trip over and back from the big sandbox.

Enjoy the weekend folks!

Injured Firefighter Update

2007-08-13T10:07:00.000-04:00

Below is a press release from the Parkside FD from Delcofirerescuenews.com

Obviously the prayers are working, please keep them coming.

Sunday, August 12, 2007- PARKSIDE FIRE COMPANY NO. 1

***** PRESS RELEASE ****

Date of Release: August 12, 2007
Time of Release: 5:00 P.M.

Injury Update
Firefighter Dan Brees is currently listed in critical condition with burns and an inhalation injury, but he is responsive.

Firefighter/EMT Chase Frost is currently listed in critical, but fair condition and is sedated for comfort.

Both firefighters have been encouraged by and responsive to visitors. However, due to the increase in visitor traffic the CCMC Burn Unit has asked that visitors be restricted to family and PFC personnel who are pre-approved for visitation.

Donations
A number of concerned citizens have expressed an interest in making donations to the fire company to assist with Chase and Dan’s needs as well as those of the company. Anyone interested in making a donation can mail a check to the Company at 107 W. Roland Rd, Parkside, PA 19015. Checks can be made out to Parkside Fire Company with Frost/Brees in the note section.

Displaced Families
The four families displaced by the fire are being assisted by the Borough of Parkside. All inquires as to their status should be directed to Tom Dietman through Borough Hall at 610-876-3659.

Many Thanks
The Officers and Members of the Parkside Fire Company would like extend our many thanks for the massive outpouring of support and assistance we have received from the Borough of Parkside, surrounding communities and our brother and sisters of the Fire Service. Your support, positive thoughts and prayers have made this incident that much easier to endure.

Parkside Fire Company will update this press release as new information becomes available.

Thomas Cubler, Public Information Officer
610-874-3456

Prayers Needed

2007-08-11T16:44:00.000-04:00

2 of my brother firefighters from Parkside Delaware County PA were seriously burned this morning in a house fire. They were inside searching for possible trapped occupants when there was a collapse which trapped 3 firefighters. Other firefighters at the scene extricated them from the burning dwelling and they were taken to the Crozer Burn Center for treatment. One is listed in serious condition and the other is in critical condition. Two other firefighters also recieved burns as a result of the collapse.

Story Here & Here

Photos Here

Audio Here

Discussion Here

Parkside Fire Company

Please pray for these two firefighters, they are both young men in their 20's and were very seriously burned.

Home Invasion Shooting Justified

2007-08-10T10:36:00.001-04:00

OK, so this family is outraged because the DA isn't going to try this man? These people need to get a reality check, it's a shame that because he was intoxicated and did something stupid this young man lost his life but the man who did the shooting was entirely justified. It's a shame that we as a society have failed to take responsibility for our actions anymore that it's always someone elses fault.

Shooting of home invaders was justified, Pa. jury says
Associated Press
Posted Friday, August 10, 2007 at 9:01 am
SOMERSET, Pa. - A man who shot two drunken men - one fatally - after they kicked their way into his apartment was justified in shooting them, a coroner's jury ruled.

Somerset County District Attorney Jerry Spangler dropped criminal homicide and other charges last year against Matthew Eperjesi, 29, of Indian Lake.

Perry Zimmerman, 33, of Indian Lake, was killed and Terry Mostoller, 33, of Berlin, was critically wounded in the April 2006 shooting.

A third man, Keith Custer, was not injured, but evidence at the coroner's inquest which ended Thursday showed all three men were extremely drunk when they arrived at Eperjesi's apartment. Custer said he, Zimmerman and Mostoller mistakenly believed Eperjesi's apartment was where a party was being held.

Eperjesi shot the men because he feared for his safety and only after warning the men he had called police and had a weapon.

"I thought at the very least they were going to come in and try to fight us," Eperjesi said. "If somebody kicks your door in, they're not coming in to say, 'Hi."'

But an attorney for Zimmerman's family vowed to press for criminal charges in Zimmerman's death.

"The Zimmermans are disappointed and disillusioned at a DA who's the most pro-criminal DA in the state," attorney Noah Geary said. "They are also, as am I, bewildered by the state police in this case who obviously don't know what murder is.

Heart Walk

2007-08-06T08:45:00.000-04:00

I have signed up with Team SPF (Shawn Paul Fry) in the Heart Walk in Dover DE on Sept 15th.

I am doing this for a number of reasons. I joined Team SPF because it is in memory of a member of my Air National Guard unit who died very suddenly and very young from heart disease. Also, heart disease took my mother in her early 40's and took both of my Dad's parents as well. Also as some readers of my blog know I nearly lost my wife to a heart attack in Jan of this year and she is still working to recover fully.

So I ask that you consider helping me reach my goal of $200 in donations for this worthwhile cause. My webpage for the walk is Here

So please support me in my quest. If you do not wish to donate online please e-mail me @ chuckman23@comcast.net for my mailing address.

Thanks

This is a mess!

2007-07-31T22:15:00.001-04:00

I guess this is what some of our young people have become. One 16yo trys to rob another of his motorcycle at gunpoint. The rider refuses and tries to ride away so he is shot in the back and killed! The bike was a present for his 16th Birthday.

I hope this man rots in hell for what he has done!

More Here

God Speed Cpl Brandon Craig

2007-07-29T23:40:00.000-04:00

Brandon Craig of Earleville MD died 19 Jul 07 in Husayniyah Iraq. He was assigned to the Headquarters Company, 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division(Stryker Brigade Combat Team), Fort Lewis, Wash.

Cpl Craig gave his life in service to our great country and his sacrifice will never be forgotten.

Until we meet again on Fiddler's Green, God Speed, Rest Easy Brother.

Memorial Page

Patriot Guard Forum

Stryker News

TAPS
Day is done, gone the sun,
From the hills, from the lake,
From the sky.
All is well, safely rest,
God is nigh.

Go to sleep, peaceful sleep,
May the soldier or sailor,
God keep.
On the land or the deep,
Safe in sleep.

Love, good night, Must thou go,
When the day, And the night
Need thee so?
All is well. Speedeth all
To their rest.

Fades the light; And afar
Goeth day, And the stars
Shineth bright,
Fare thee well; Day has gone,
Night is on.

Thanks and praise, For our days,
'Neath the sun, Neath the stars,
'Neath the sky,
As we go, This we know,
God is nigh.

Today's News Bites

2007-07-24T18:46:00.000-04:00

A Florida Fire Dept Captain has been reprimanded for placing his county issued polo shirt at a memorial for the 9 fallen firefighters in Charleston SC. He wrote the words "God Bless you" on the shirt and left it at a memorial while he and others from his department were attending the services for the fallen brothers.

More Here

Canal Day in nearby Chesapeake City MD is too rowdy! We thought about going this year but we know the setup of the town is a little rough for the wheel chair.

Also, Michael Vick is an a$$hat! Check this blog out.

That's all for today, if you get a chance to watch "The Last King of Scotland", it is excellent! I have always liked Forest Whitaker, I hated his character's in ER & The Shield but he is a wonderful actor. He does a fantastic job as Idi Amin in this movie.

Article

2007-07-24T08:51:00.001-04:00

This is an excellent article, Dean Barnett says it very well and gives some great examples of the caliber of the men that are fighting this war. -Chuck

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/904pffgs.asp

Summer Time

2007-07-24T05:42:00.000-04:00

Once again it's time for the fairs etc of summer. This Sat we went to the Cecil County Fair in MD. A real bargin @ $5.00 to get in which includes all the shows and exhibits. All you have to pay for is the rides and food, which are both reasonable. We wandered around taking in the exhibits and looking at the livestock then we found a place to sit for the Antique tractor parade and got some dinner. After the parade came the tractor pulls. We know a couple of the pullers so it's fun to watch. Check out the video below.

Sunday found us doing yardwork, it wasn't as warm as it has been so it was a good time to get it done. We finished up around the pool and under the steps so things look pretty good now.

I hope to blog more and hopefully some of you are still reading this and haven't given up on my blog yet.

Message of the Day

2007-07-20T10:20:00.001-04:00

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from your safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. - Mark Twain."

5 Years Later Rest Easy Brothers

2007-07-04T22:15:00.000-04:00

It's hard to believe that it's been 5 years since the tragic fire in Gloucester NJ. It was a difficult day for many fire fighters in our area. I awoke for a day of fun with my family, as was my habit I checked the overnight news on my fire pager. I went nuts when I saw that several members of a Camden County FD had been killed in an overnight job. I immediatly started calling my brothers cell until I got an answer he was OK, or as OK as he could be that 2 of his close friends had died in a fire. It was a tough day for him and for every other firefighter from Gloucester City & Mt Ephriam and the surrounding departments. The days that followed showed what true brotherhood was and amazed many in the small working class towns of suburban Camden NJ. Firefighters from all over made their way to Camden County to pay their respects. Fire departments from Delaware & Pennsylvania provided crews and apparatus to staff the stations at Mt Ephraim & Gloucester City for several days after the tragic fire to give the members of those departments time to mourn. The days of the services many more arrived to staff not only those stations but those of the surrounding departments so nobody would have to miss out on paying tribute to their brothers.

Chief James Sylvester & Deputy Chief John West of the Mt Ephriam Fire Dept and Firefighter Thomas Stewart gave the ultimate sacrafice that day trying to save 3 little girls trapped in the blaze. Collette, Alexandra, & Claudia slack also perished in that fire. One person made the statement that God needed 3 strong men to bring those little girls to heaven so he chose Jim, John & Tom to do that job.

You can read more about this tragedy at the following links

Courier Post Article

Photo Gallery

The Fireman's Prayer

REST EASY BROTHERS