The column I might have written

The column I might have written

Steven R. Berryman

[January 6, 2012 for my blog, MediaHooker.org]

This Friday is an especially strange today for me,

separated from an ongoing conversation with readers

of The Frederick News-Post. As the new Editorial

page editor Cliff Cumber took it upon himself to do

away with all weekly columns; my voice has been

successfully muted.

Returning the resulting Emails and assimilating the

online comments will not be a necessary part of this

day.

In its place was a – not so local – column by The Los

Angeles Times; not a local citizen-journalist.

In fairness, weekly columnists were offered the opportunity

to post up to two columns a month. This arrangement held

little comfort for me, as I know that readers want weekly

attention to their thought processes, and lose out to

random journaling.

Ironically, the Frederick News-Post – a very long standing

and award winning paper for it’s size/geographics – is a

DAILY newspaper. One would assume that regular contact

with readers would be more respected; why do they print

a new “Editorial” opinion piece every day?

My argument is simply that the minimum continuity with

an audience of readers is once a week. A writer/reader relationship

– involving a learning curve – is otherwise impossible.

Examples of newspapers with regular weekly columns include: The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Gazette, The Baltimore Sun, and The Examiner.

The impact of having random columns – even with a loose monthly schedule – is exactly like publishing extra letters to the editor every day. My reading says that the paper was already doing that…

And what of the papers approved description of its own column writers, “citizen-journalists?”

Think about it. Quite demeaning, really, as are we not citizens already? Or is this some attempt to set up a firewall between the News-Post corporately and its contract-basis writers?

As for me, a professional writer I was not (as defined by payment for prose) before doing my Friday FNP column. I did write a weekly Monday column – hundreds - for www.TheTentacle.com since 2007; the stable of authors assembled by John Ashbury is certainly a fine association.

My association with the FNP began upon the urging of radio talk show friend Bob Miller of WFMD am930, who suggested I follow up on the ad by then editor Lee Permenter for a columnist to replace Katherine Heerbrandt; she had been writing three times a week; pretty daunting stuff! Fifty applied, and I got one of three weekly slots, along with Marta Mossburg and Barry Kissin.

I was no “citizen-journalist,” though.

My forte was in activism, with special attention to Frederick County, Maryland. Writing wasn’t for fun, it was for impact.

At the time that I had signed on to the paper, my experience base was what had set me up: I had spearheaded Citizens for Walkersville, in opposition to the Ahmadiyya Muslim rec center, Represented www.HelpSaveMaryland.org the largest and most successful anti-Illegal group in Maryland, participated in local GOP campaigns, acted in a leadership capacity for the local Tea Party effort, was a frequent contributor on WFMD radio call-in shows, run a large home owners association, and had over 5,000 facebook contacts amassed. My blog is read worldwide.

My placement weekly was no accident. I easily slid into a – friend – “Blaine Young styled” weekly column. It wasn’t about telling folks what to think; it was to GET people to think! No spoon feeding here, you guys….just keep movin’ along…

An internal conflict or two within a column was a fun trap to set; it was used “liberally.”

So my decision was to “opt out” of the deal for a couple of random monthly columns, as it seems too much like pissing in the wind to me, compared with having any real impact.

I also feel that the demise of weekly columns makes The Frederick News-Post a more passive pablum for an election year; hopefully not an advertising-driven decision.

But, life goes on, and we all make adjustments. Writers never go away.

What's in/out for 2012

What's in/out for 2012 Originally published December 30, 2011 The Frederick News-Post By Steven R. Berryman

It's been a year for the books; we're about to close it tomorrow, and I for one am ready for that and a fresh start! After much research and consultation with oracles, I have composed my anticipatory "What's in/out for 2012" for your reading indulgence: In is hoped that Election Day 2012 will begin to consolidate a plan that matches up with stated goals for our great nation. Out will be an American electorate that accepts empty words as opposed to economic improvements. In will be even more creative manipulation of statistics that prove we have lower unemployment, more jobs and a general expansion of a positive business climate. Out (of a job) will be many U.S. citizens who had believed their government was actually protecting their American dream. In will be one GOP candidate who prevails in the protracted primary dogfight, facilitated by a gladiatorial media concept of "debate." Out (of office) will remain said Republicans if they choose the man who looks like a president, talks like a president, but represents an insider continuation of the ruination of America. Out (of their tents) will be the Occupy Wall Street gang, when they discover that winter is cold. Out will also be tea party influence as they give up on a third party and/or constitutional convention. Out will be what had been the occupation of Iraq. In (to Afghanistan) will go many of these troops. Maintaining a military posture for the coming cold war with Iran will be the convenience. In will be browsing online for Cyber Monday. In will be making the actual purchase at your local brick-and-mortar storefront, as examination of the merchandise will remain paramount to a shopping experience. Out (I hope) will be the distracted "texting while driving." Out will be legal loopholes allowing exceptions to this abused and dangerous practice. In should be hands-free technology. In will be transcontinental pipelines, which add to national energy stability. Out will be 10-year waits for nuclear power plants, as available power dominates the world jobs contest. Out will also be pretending that "green energy" is cost-effective and creates jobs (unless subsidized with your tax dollars). Bonus clue: Wind farms don't pay for themselves either, as measured over time. In will be the farmers of Maryland, as they find their political voice against an oppressive land-use plan by Gov. Martin O'Malley. Out (of office) will be anyone who underestimates the value of our rural heritage, culture and investment. In is local activism and pride in our fair community of Frederick County. Out (of office) are those who don't understand that compromise in growth regulation will be essential to maintaining our posture of recovering from the Great Recession, and remaining on top as a "destination" community. Out will be single-source information gathering and reporting; in will be a more diversified information highway, as it becomes the high ground for the battles for hearts, minds and souls in this age. --Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick. (srbmgr@comcast.net)

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Just for fun 2011

Just for fun 2011 Originally published December 23, 2011 The Frederick News-Post By Steven R. Berryman

Forgetting the fear and loathing that is our political landscape for a time, on the eve of Christmas Eve, here's an offbeat offering to change up from the normal diatribes. First a reader quiz to see who's been paying attention -- an autobiographical "believe-it-or-not" segue -- and maybe some Q and A. These are true or false. You may leave answers in comments, email me, or simply make note on your paper: The author once advised Ronald Reagan on which stereo system to put in the White House. The author once spent two days under the right wing of the Enola Gay bomber. The author once had dinner with Saddam Hussein. The author was at Three Mile Island during the 1979 partial core meltdown. His dad's law firm represented the Democratic National Committee during the Nixon administration, and had offices in the Watergate Complex. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was created at a past employer of the author. Hugo Award-winning author Larry Niven has given the author political advice. This author was once a crossing guard, a softball ump, a basketball coach and a YMCA camp counselor. Clue: Only one of the above is false! Here are some frequently asked questions I get concerning this column, and the answers: Why don't you look happy in your profile picture on this column? Answer: The FNP photographer took some great happy shots, too, but I knew that the serious side of the Great Recession would have to be a recurring topic. The sour picture was my choice. Why do you list your middle initial in your column name, as some think it pretentious? Answer: Because it makes Web searching by name more accurate when I check to see what gets cross-posted to the Internet. It's been my method to see what folks are interested in. Why do you get so many negative comments in the online edition? Answer: I've learned that the positive feedback most often comes directly by email and over Facebook reposts. Also, opposition views, by their very nature, evoke a stronger response, and are more likely to crush enough apathy to make somebody actually leave a comment! Plus, yes, Virginia, on occasion I have stooped intentionally to the controversial! Why do you hate liberals? Answer: Because they routinely eschew personal responsibility in favor of socialism, and actually propagate a drain on our society and the traits that have made America a great nation and beacon for the world. Sorry for all the "ands." What's your favorite punctuation sign, and why? Answer: Easy; the semicolon. 'Nuff said. How did you get 5,000-plus Facebook "friends"? Answer: By systematically searching the groups of people that have embraced the same causes as I've had. Friends of friends have proved to be pretty reliable as additions. What do you think of the new Facebook "wall" format? Answer: Hate it. They must have hired the geeks from MySpace. Next week will be my last column of the year: "What's in/what's out 2012." Your ideas are welcome. -- Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick. srbmgr@comcast.net

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The "what-ifs" of 2012

The 'what-ifs' of 2012 Originally published December 16, 2011 The Frederick News-Post By Steven R. Berryman

[Editor’s Note: Due to an error by the editor, Steve Berryman’s column did not appear in Friday’s edition.] Are you in stocks, bonds, gold, or real estate? Or, what if life is just paycheck-to-paycheck, and choices made daily contain immediate consequences? With a record number of imponderables hanging over our heads like Damocles’ sword, how does one function financially, or as a business, in our new world of “never seen that one before”? Being able to see just over the horizon has been necessary for planning and investment decisions since the beginning of time. Watching trends and monitoring indicators had been useful tools. A predictability of risk had made choices and investment easier, and trends more trustable. With the consequences of the Great Recession still upon us — no matter the political definition — we must consider the sheer number of “what-ifs” surrounding us carefully. What if our stock exchanges were really rigged by insiders, such as your senators and congressmen who operate with impunity and immunity, making money coming and going based upon insider trading knowledge that gets others arrested? What if institutional investors could use computers to get into and out of the market in less than a second and predictably siphon off money? The above examples make “timing the market” seem like an antiquated concept, and holding for the future a fruitless exercise. What if the world stopped using the United States dollar as its “reserve currency”? There had been days when all oil transactions and balance of trade deposits were required in the form of our money, making it more valuable. Today our monetary policy is globally based, and the result has been to make incoming goods cheap to people that are less able to afford them. Job export and extinction of manufacturing was the cost. What if gold hoarding nations such as Russia suddenly decided to liquidate their holdings based upon fears of a global sell off? Will rumors of international collapse, as in the nation of Greece, or the dissolution of the European Union cause an irrational sell-off panic? Closer to home, California continues to suffer as a bellwether state, stuffed with entitlement excess and liberalism costs. The economic impact of a long-term acceptance of illegal immigration also contributes to a circumstance that may cause our largest state to become bankrupt, seeking cash form our Federal Treasury. With a rush to relief, how far behind could Michigan and others be? What if taxation of the Internet became essential to saving the U. S. Postal Service? A quarter per email? What if your mortgage interest deduction became a pawn of the Democrat-Republican class warfare? Watch out, because inflicting pain directly upon unwitting Americans for short-term political advantage is now routine. Economic solutions to the punctured housing bubble have proven to be a fraud and a waste. We can’t know all, but can hedge against the forces of ignorance. The answer to all of the above is to remain aware, stay informed, diversify your holdings, get involved, and fight our sewer of national apathy with all of your resources. Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick srbmgr@comcast.net

Please send comments to webmaster or contact us at 301-662-1177. Copyright 1997-11 Randall Family, LLC. All rights reserved. Do not duplicate or redistribute in any form. The Frederick News-Post Privacy Policy. Use of this site indicates your agreement to our Terms of Service.

The politics of division

The politics of division Originally published December 02, 2011 The Frederick News-Post By Steven R. Berryman

Forces keeping America from a union in harmony with itself seem to be at an all-time high now. Preserving opposition to a plan or policy or cause seems essential to maintaining the power structure. For example, the military-industrial complex needed opposition -- conveniently provided by the former U.S.S.R. -- in order to remain "supersized" after World War II, and was aided by grossly inflated internal surveys of Soviet power and capability. But it was a win-win. The evil empire of the East had its bogeyman to protect and prepare against, and in return we had budgetary excuses for absolutely anything, the most egregious in cost vs. reality cloaked behind a "black budget" to keep the embarrassment level low for those in congressional oversight roles. To extend the benefits to the U.S. war machine, entire industries were created to demolish missile silos and dismantle nuclear bombs at plants the size of cities, as in Pantex of Texas. And the money moving from the fallout of the Cold War continues to this day: One of the costs of avoiding any nuclear annihilation was to pay off Russian weapons scientists with continuing salary to keep them from selling their hard-learned or stolen secrets to terrorist nations or enterprises. In the cases of North Korea and Iran, this did not work out as planned. The above is the quintessential example of a self-opposing machine that self-serves certain parties, against the interests of many, such as the taxpaying citizens of America. But do religions exist by touting superiority to other religions or atheism itself? Does racism propagate through the generations by maintaining a status quo of victims on the one hand, and racist villains on the other? Will we maintain this war? Does the "war on drugs" work in tandem with a justice-industrial complex? Do Republicans and Democrats really represent their constituents' best interests, for the common good of a nation, or do they willfully confront each other over taxation, immigration, abortion and foreign policy in order to create pressure points and ways to "rally the people" in partisan ways that are needlessly divisive and counterproductive? Don't we all want a government that runs more efficiently so we can pay lower taxes? Why don't we collaborate in efforts to fight waste, fraud and abuse of the taxpayer? It seems to me that we squander our efforts on opposition and maintenance of this power structure, too. Do the forces of the tea party and the Occupy Wall Street movements really oppose each other? I don't believe that they do now, but I could foresee a day when convenient contrasts are invented to keep the sides in line and on task. Don't we all want the best opportunities for our children, the safest environment, and a peaceful world? Real leadership involves finding that common ground and taking it. Bureaucracies and power structures be damned when they maintain a divided America. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick. See you at WFMD's Christmas Cash for Kids today! (srbmgr@comcast.net)

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Occupy the Lazy Boy!

Occupy the Lazy Boy! Originally published November 25, 2011 The Frederick News-Post By Steven R. Berryman

For those not toiling in the materialistic world of "Black Friday" today, I'd like to offer some more spiritual thoughts on the continuing saga of the anti-materialistic movement, Occupy Wall Street. It's a study in contrasts with reality; I'm for giving OWS a chance, despite the irony that they want -- in the true entitlement sense -- what you have. I notice the OWS archetypes shopping for iPhones and tablet computers in my store quite often, self-identified by their dress-down garb. They occupy the "wants" side of the store, as opposed to the "needs" side. This is further explained by what we call consumers' search for either the "wants" or the "needs" sides of our merchandising. A 60-inch Samsung LED flat-screen TV is a want; a major appliance like a refrigerator or laundry pair is demonstrably a need, unless you live in a tent city, protesting in some park, of course. Despite the example of irony above, I want to further amplify my best wishes for OWS, as I have stated in previous columns and on Facebook posts. The over-indulgers of Thanksgiving calories -- taking on the Lazy Boy recliner today -- do not get the same respect from me as do the newbie-activists with agenda still infirm and often self-opposed. At least they are physically taking action -- as opposed to simply complaining. The occupation part is a formative mode of operation as well as a media stunt. Yes, I'm willing to accept that the youthful idealism of OWS is not of the same caliber as the pragmatic maturity of the tea party, but that should be expected on generational lines alone. What bothers me is the lack of depth in considering the origins of what they protest, and a proper strategy of where to do so most righteously. For example, since crony-capitalists from Wall Street, The Fed and the banking sector came on board full-scale with the Obama administration, why not Occupy the Rose Garden or the Ellipse? I know, too thorny. But Occupy on behalf of free housing, free food, free college, or free health care for all as an entitlement? Seeking ill-defined "social justice" is how we got here, $15 trillion in debt. Another OWS want is to forgive all bank debt and just start over; right! Should the fundamental primal and emotional urges of the original OWS be granted, see capitalism be replaced with wholesale socialism; been there done that in Europe. Do admire OWS for sensing that we are a failed political model now. Praise them for knowing that something must be done! Acknowledge that they got up out of the Lazy Boy -- or sleeping bag or futon, or whatever. But help them to aim at the systemic corruption currently creating a leadership vacancy in our Congress and White House. Hold the right groups accountable. Fix the two-party system revolving door; no doubt their leaders are reading this from Lazy Boys today! --------------------------------------------------------- Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick, and is occupied professionally with retail today. (srbmgr@comcast.net)

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Mad enough to protest - OWS

Mad enough to protest [ OWS ] Originally published November 11, 2011 The Frederick News-Post By Steven R. Berryman

You know they are mad because they act out, shout and misbehave. They resist authority, want to do things their own way and live in their own world! Nope, I'm not talking about your pre-adolescent children, I'm talking about the various protest movements; some have already changed the world. Some of these "children" are more mature than others. Various degrees of lasting success ensued. The feminists burned their bras and pushed against the glass ceiling of workplace bias. They wanted all of the benefits of being a man, plus retain all of the inherent rights of being a woman in American culture. Today we hold open the limo door for some of them, and others are distraught that they "also have to be the men." Gender definitions and roles in marriages and households became forever confused and overlapping, for better or for worse. A mixed win, in my book. The civil rights movement leveled income disparity in some cases where racism was a factor, and actually gave benefit to those with more color in their skin through affirmative action programs and LBJ's Great Society. Wealth redistribution begat "entitlement" in part, and the bill is due today. The anti-war movement drove the awareness that America was stuck in an unwinnable war with questionable motives and a lack of political will to follow it through. This hastened the end of Vietnam, and also provided for lots of wild parties and opportunities to meet girls. After all that, we still made the Iraq decision falsely. So much pot we forgot the lesson? Several years ago the tea party became an activist group, originally upset with how they were being treated by an overarching government. Health care became Obamacare for unsubstantiated reasons, taxes kept killing the middle class, and the states were being overrun by an all-powerful central federal government characterized by "ruling by executive decree," and by Cabinet officers replaced by "czars," effectively adding to the lopsided powers of the executive branch. Protests were criticized and discouraged by an angry media that wanted tea to fail. They miscounted rally totals, focused on fringe behaviors, and claimed the movement was "not of the people." Today, literally, Occupy Wall Street will flirt with Frederick at a meeting, "The local forum on economic injustice," for an open mic, and all are invited. Doors open at 5 p.m., Parish Hall of All Saints' Episcopal Church, whose entrance is the big green door between 19 and 25 N. Court St. There's more in common than not between tea and OWS, going back to the origins of all of the great movements. A unity at some level between these two groups is urgently needed to slay a dragon the size of ours; don't let them divide us as a nation for easy pillaging! Being "mad enough to protest" can be the beginning of where we come together. Please examine critically the forces that benefit from keeping us apart. -- Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick. (srbmgr@comcast.net)

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Failed expectations

Failed expectations

Originally published November 04, 2011

The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

From the black-and-white film vaults of the past, Mom greets the kids with warm cookies after school, Dad has time to read the paper in his easy chair before dinner, and Grandpa is tinkering with his model railroad in the basement. One of the switches keeps derailing his trains.

Today, in the world of the "Obama economy," Mom works, the kids know where the key is, Dad will be home after dinner, sometime after his 75-minute commute, and Grandpa is working at McDonald's. Indeed, not only is the middle class failing, statistically one out of three families living at or below the poverty level is found in the suburbs.

We are living in the first generation since World War II that will not outperform their parents. The children growing up today will struggle simply to manage expectations and achieve a lifestyle similar to what they have become accustomed to.

Returning our fiscal house to order is mandatory for any recovery of the best version of what had been "good old days." This is based upon interest payments -- or "debt service" -- that we pay as a nation each day. As a percentage of all expenditures, it's taking over all else.

What to work on? An Energy Department that allows prices for fuel and electricity to spike, an education system that forces kids into college who are ill-prepared or not "college material." And now Uncle Sam has saved banks from projected defaulted student loans, at your expense!

How about a military postured to fight World War III and rule the planet, or a "war on drugs" that populates prisons without results? Opportunities to save are endless.

As the nation's manager in chief, our president blames others for our present state of affairs, but only he can take responsibility for what he is paid to own, America's economy.

Many moons ago, for Montgomery Ward, I had the opportunity to run stores as a general manager in four states. It became clearly understood, by all promoted, that the day you took on the mantle of top leadership of a new store was the day you "owned" the responsibility for all existing problems -- the past be damned.

Accountability for success at the top has long been standard management philosophy.

Why does our leader still ponder this after almost an entire term in office? Has he been saving "the good stuff" for a theoretical second term?

And what of the United States Congress? Are they performing their fundamental role of establishing exactly how to balance our national budget?

Nope, they have delegated the above to some "supercommittee," creating a layer of insulation from any forthcoming outcome; its report not even binding!

You say you've heard some of this before? It's still Story No. 1, even without a headline.

The activism now peaking spans the tea party to Occupy Wall Street; the derailing is not limited to Grandpa's train set, but includes the real American dream.

srbmgr@comcast.net

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Considering Correctness

Considering correctness Originally published October 28, 2011 The Frederick News-Post By Steven R. Berryman (also, be sure to read the postscript at the end!)

Of course the words we choose define us, and reveal the messages we attempt to convey; isn't that what language is for? English has twice the number of available words to choose to enunciate our meaning as the next closest language, German. Although the context of usage is critical, we are being driven mad by the "political correctness" demands of a liberal education system. Should a pejorative word with a political charge be chosen, is it fair to the targeted recipient and to the casual reader, especially as some become inflamed? For instance, we don't say "stimulus" anymore. [We say "jobs bill."] In this week's Monday Advance section, FNP columnist Frankee Lyons passionately explored the word "illegals," treating readers of this paper to a fresh new discussion. The value of anonymous comments in response -- available to the online edition -- was clear as they peaked at 87 responses posted the next day. Tracking comments is a good indication of the public mood. These comments fell quite predictably along partisan lines, scribed by many with views already on record. Each response took one side or another quite distinctly; the long debate on what is undeniably the national dysfunction of uncontrolled borders still seethes. Before I forget, Lyons is the freshest in age of the FNP columnists, and so is to be especially commended for learning how to strike such a resonant chord with so many readers. Despite views to the contrary, writing an opinion column is not about being absolutely right on any given issue, it's about generating the conversation. "'Illegals'?" was brilliant in this respect. But that's just my opinion! Followers of this column and my blog already know well my position on what I shall now call "the ongoing phenomenon of noncitizens breaking into America without visa or legal status of entry." This will keep me from the impolitic shorthand of "illegals." Forming a position early on, my association with the group Help Save Maryland goes back a full year before this became such a hot topic. The enforced political correctness of those with a stake in the game -- immigration lawyers and CASA of Maryland, for instance, was instrumental in labeling my group both "nativist" and "extremist." This was formally pronounced by a group called the Southern Poverty Law Center. Racist accusations are the ultimate in words that carry baggage for many; talk about words that carry a political charge! To inflict the damage, the charge need not even be true. What gets lost in the semantic argument we choose is the argument itself. Is some false sense of "fairness" to those who made it over the fence more important than our national sovereignty as citizens with something to protect? Very clearly in our public education system, the value of being a U.S. citizen has become subjugated to some Walt Disney version of fairness; we have a diverse culture, a history, and a heritage worth protecting. Sticks and stones may break our bones ... -- Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick. (srbmgr@comcast.net)

Please send comments to webmaster or contact us at 301-662-1177. Copyright 1997-11 Randall Family, LLC. All rights reserved. Do not duplicate or redistribute in any form. The Frederick News-Post Privacy Policy. Use of this site indicates your agreement to our Terms of Service. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Postscript: the next day, a prime example of why we use the force of words presented itself!]

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/display.htm?storyID=127696

Murder charges filed Suspect ID'd in March shooting death at Burger King Originally published October 29, 2011 Frederick News-Post By Brian Englar News-Post Staff

NEW! Click photo to view additional photos Courtesy Photo Mejia-Varela Advertisement "> Frederick police have obtained an arrest warrant for a Salvadoran national wanted in the shooting death of a Burger King manager in March, Frederick County State's Attorney Charlie Smith said Friday. Jose Reyes Mejia-Varela, 21, is in Baltimore in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service awaiting sentencing on charges of illegally re-entering the U.S. after he was deported. Mejia-Varela is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Jacinta "Patty" Ayala, 32, who was shot and killed in an apparent robbery as she was opening the Burger King on East Patrick Street in Frederick, where she was an assistant manager. He faces additional charges of armed robbery, first-degree assault, second-degree assault and theft of between $1,000 and $10,000, according to Frederick police. Smith said during a news conference Friday the warrant would be served after Mejia-Varela is sentenced on the federal charges. His office hopes to begin trying the case within six months after he is brought to Frederick. Smith said that in the absence of eyewitnesses or a confession, cracking the case was a painstaking task requiring hundreds of hours of work by investigators. He described the case against Mejia-Varela as "very strong." "This was a case that really took a lot of diligence looking at each and every piece of evidence possible," Smith said. "One piece of evidence that would be presented would reveal a need to investigate three, four, five different avenues." Police would not release any details about the crime itself or say how Mejia-Varela -- a former employee at the Burger King -- was identified as a suspect. Frederick police spokesman Lt. Clark Pennington said detectives interviewed Mejia-Varela during the original investigation but did not consider him a suspect at the time. Pennington said they discovered he was in the country illegally and reported him to immigration authorities.......ctd on link above... ========================================================== Ref: Also, the column this refers to is here: http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/opinion/display_columnist.htm?StoryID=127434

The unnamed angst

The unnamed angst Originally published October 21, 2011 The Frederick News-Post Steven R. Berryman

You can feel it. Protesters at various interrelated organizations try to tap into it. Economists struggle to define it. It's our national sense of unnamed angst. One specific cause of our malaise was well-defined in an Oct. 18 New York Times article by Binyamin Appelbaum titled "Gloom Grips Consumers, and It May Be Home Prices." Relative to the root of our demise in the Great Recession: "That [the equity lost] has led a growing number of economists to argue that the collapse of housing prices, a defining feature of this downturn, is also a critical and underappreciated impediment to recovery. Americans have lost a vast amount of wealth, and they have lost faith in housing as an investment. They lack money, and they lack the confidence that they will have more money tomorrow." My thoughts were: It doesn't matter that the lost equity in home prices -- from the peak of a bubble -- was only the lost and unrealized gains on paper; they felt real. In other words, homes don't really become profit centers unless they are sold and the profit is taken, as in cashing in your casino chips, or unless one borrows against the equity to make an improvement in the home. Borrowing against the equity of a home, farm or business to take a vacation, for instance, is simply displacing that equity forever -- in a gamble that growth in value and the economy always increases over time, as this is not a reinvestment. So the angst takes a negative market-psychology turn when we are not only poorer on paper, but feel so as well. And we are all in that boat until the repossessed homes are sold and underwater mortgages are rectified. Unfortunately, the other angst is based on the original solution to the popped housing bubble: Remember the original TARP solution that was never implemented? When it proved impossible, it became "stimulus," which is now a banned word. Forcing banks to restructure mortgages was also a dismal failure. To fix the psychology of our dilemma means we must regain people's trust that they will not be gamed again. The protest movements feel it but don't verbalize it too well. The consumer psychology rehab is critical to the spending levels needed for a general American revival in our self-selected, service-based economy. The only real solution to alleviating angst is to seek justice against the criminals who perpetrated the bubble and crash -- those who profited from it. They developed bizarre financial devices like credit-default swaps, repackaged worthless derivatives of bad mortgages, and lobbied their way clear of government oversight through political donations. Congress never manned up. Your Justice Department looks to terrorism and gun running instead of prosecuting the enemy within, the unbridled greed of human nature, left unregulated and unpunished, much of it on Wall Street. -- Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick. srbmgr@comcast.net

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The 9-9-9-9 Solutions

The 9-9-9-9 Solutions

Steven R. Berryman

[from TheTentacle of 10/17/2011 with

apologies to Herman Cain!]

Not to be outdone by the godfather of GOP candidates, Herman Cain, who is criticized for his oversimplifications in a “9-9-9” plan to fix America, I have decided to add to his concepts. As you would expect, my plan includes more than one bonus digit!

For nine nights now I have tossed and turned in my sleep as “nine-type” solutions came to me seemingly out of nowhere. The numerology was numbing.

*Nine should be the number of allowed political parties and candidates for general election cycles; that congress raised the drawbridge in protection of a two-party system has been ruinous.

As a function of this:

Corporations need only fund lobbying efforts to each party in turn in a 70/30 or 60/40 formula, based upon a “likelihood of winning” risk assessment to retain the “power of the loophole, exemption, and waiver.

*The nine percent unemployment rule: Any administration that has allowed the American national rate of unemployment to remain at or above nine percent by the end of their term shall not be allowed the opportunity for “four more years.” The felled president then must wait on the bench for nine years to run again.

*Nine years in prison for a sustained charge of dereliction of duty by any member of Congress. Duties in question shall be understood to include the dusty old concept of what I shall call “oversight.”

For the benefit of our legislators, especially senior ones, this oversight consists of riding shotgun in protection of the people’s best interests, as opposed to those of special interests, push groups, elites and industrialists.

The nine-year penalty shall include ninety-nine hours of forced listening to their campaign speeches. Failing this, ninety-nine hours of State of the Union speeches may be substituted.

*A nine percent national sales tax, or “value added tax,” if you will, shall be implemented with the following caveats: The bottom 9 percent of income (non) earners shall pay none of this whatsoever; a special9999 credit Card shall be issued to these people with biometric ID and means testing a must to qualify. Drug testing, of course.

Proceeds from the above tax will be used of repay members of the middle-class in the form of credits for raising children, their education, and will go to families with special needs. This will be accomplished via changes to the income tax tables in favor of the qualifying families.

*Nine percent fees on corporate profits from American profits made overseas or off shore. This could be just what we need to bring some jobs home, including heavy industries needed for emergency wartime production should a trade war break out (with China?)

Never has our nation been more undermined than in the downside of globalization, shifting jobs out in the same way that Maryland sent many millionaires to other states. Thanks Bill Clinton. Makes one wonder what Hillary would do?

*9x will be the maximum multiplier for the salary of corporate CEOs, based upon a formula of multiplying by the 75^th percentile above the average salaries offered and paid by said company. Stock options shall be deemed as income.

*$99. This is to be the maximum allowed extra rent we will agree to pay for our seat at the table of the United Nations. [over and above the next highest contributor.]

*Nine overseas military installations. These will be largely staging operations for emergency contingency operations and the force protection. This will be our maximum total allowed, and that with the consent, not the coercion, of that sovereign nation.

Remaining forces can be brought home to help with our national infrastructure, or another productive dual usage.

*Nine minutes per day: This will be the minimum mandatory amount of time that all Americans will be required to read current events in a balanced newspaper, perhaps on a rotating basis as there will surely be no agreement on which ones qualify; 99% assured.

I am especially proud of this last one, as I am astonished daily by the number of Americans who have been so turned-off and disconnected with the forces tearing our great nation apart that they have tuned-out and given up even following the long march of our national dissolution.

* * * * * * * * *

Related postscript:

Ninety-nine percenters of Occupy Wall Street have been sucking up the editorial oxygen of late; violent versions of this movement have been burning Rome, in what hopefully will be the last of their ninelives. Beware the hijackings made possible by the well intended!

srbmgr@gmail.com

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