MediaHooker

2012-02-21T11:25:00.002-05:00

Scott Berryman wins the Maryland State Finals of the Indoor Track 800m run for 2012!

Time: 2:01:22

FNP story follows: Dateline Largo, Maryland

State Indoor Track: King extends reign with another title
After overcoming injury, the Oakdale junior sets state record in pole vault
Originally published February 21, 2012

By Greg Swatek


	Photo by Graham Cullen Oakdale's Emma King watches the bar fall off after nearly clearing 12 feet, 2 inches in the Class 2A pole vault. Moments earlier, she set the state record by going over at 11-9 1/2 Monday at the State Indoor Track and Field Championships in Landover. See more sports photos at newspost.com/infocus.

LANDOVER -- There are two regrettable truths Oakdale's Emma King faces at almost every track meet.

She's going to have an insufferably long wait before she gets the chance to compete. And her final attempt will always be a miss. It's the inescapable reality of being a pole vaulter.

King, a junior, has made such great improvements over the last three years that there now exists a giant chasm between her and the rest of the field at in-state meets.

It's not uncommon to see most of her competitors bow out of the event while she is still sitting idly by in a sweatshirt and sweatpants, trying not to get bored as she waits for his first turn. Once King gets going, it's usually quite a show.

At Monday's Class 2A-1A indoor meet at the Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex, King broke a state record of 10 years by sailing over the bar at 11 feet and 1Ú2 inch on her first attempt. What's more impressive? She landed on her feet.

"Ever since I was three years old when I started gymnastics, I didn't know it (at the time) but I was going to be working toward the pole vault and getting the record," she said.

Calling King entirely satisfied, though, would not be accurate since her winning height wasn't her personal record. On Feb. 4 at Hagerstown Community College, King soared 12-3, which even caught her by surprise.

"I was like, 'Whoa. I was not expecting that," she said.

This time, King missed three times at 12-2. She was basically over the bar on her second and third attempts before nudging it off both times on her way down.

"I just have so much to improve on," she said after winning a state indoor title for the second consecutive year. "I am nowhere close to stopping."

King joined Catoctin's Hannah Stone and Savannah Steinly and Walkerville's Scott Berryman and Megan Mounts as the champions from Frederick County. All of them competed in 2A.

Stone, Steinly and Berryman each won their first indoor state titles, while Mounts successfully defended her championship from a year ago.

Stone won the high jump with a leap of 5-6, Steinly cruised to an easy victory in the 800-meter run, Berryman rallied to win his 800 by less than a second and Mounts avenged a loss in the regional championships by winning the shot put.

At the county championships on Jan. 14, Stone broke the long-standing meet record, held by her coach Kathy Messner-Stevens, by clearing 5-81Ú4 to win the high jump.

Though she didn't match that feat, Stone said she felt good about her winning jump because it felt good enough to go over 5-9. Her confidence is completely intact as she prepares for upcoming regional and national indoor meets.

Steinly, who gave up basketball to run her first indoor season, will join Stone and other local athletes on March 9-11 at the New Balance Indoor Nationals after beating the qualifying time by a second in the 800. The indoor nationals will take place at the Armory in New York City.

Steinly's winning time of 2 minutes, 19.68 seconds was her best time indoors.

"I wasn't sure what to expect," she said. "I wanted to push myself and do the best I could."

Steinly dominated her race from the start, unlike Berryman, who had to make up a noticeable deficit on the final lap to nip North Caroline's Alex Schulties at the finish line.

Berryman's winning time was 2:01.22, which helped the Walkersville boys finish second in the 2A team standings with 43 points. (Frederick Douglass-PG won with 56). Schulties' time was 2:01.32.

"It was the last lap of the season," Berryman said. "Might as well kill myself" by putting in a strong effort.

Mounts, meanwhile, was motivated by her second-place finish to Douglass-PG's Desha Mango at the regional meet.

"Once you get beat, that inspires you to try a little bit harder," Mounts said.

At the state meet, Mounts tossed the shot 36-9, while Mango was third at 35-71Ú2.

"It nice to win it twice," the sophomore said. "Last year, I barely knew what was going on. This year, I knew what I had to do."

Prior to one of her vaults, King paused on the runway for a moment and just smiled. She was thankful to finally be healthy.

Last season, she strained her lower back in a meet at Georgetown Prep. She pushed aside the pain to compete at the state meet and she won the 1A pole vault by going over the bar at 11 feet.

But that was her last vault of the school year. The back injury forced her to miss the entire outdoor season.

"It was devastating," she said. "I didn't know if I'd be able to come back."

As a freshman at Thomas Johnson, King didn't have a successful vault in the finals at the indoor state meet. A few months later, she cleared 10-6 to place second in 4A at the outdoor state meet.

Now, she had raised the bar to 11 feet. But, suddenly, there was doubt. King was unable to do any physical activity while she recovered.

"I just had to stand back and kind of smile," she said.

But King is a hard worker. "I am very serious at practice," she said. "I really don't fool around."

And through the same determination that allowed her to push through the pain and win a state title, she is now poised to raise the bar to even greater heights. She confessed that her form is still not quite where she wants it. Though, saying "it's terrible right now" might be stretching the truth a bit.

"I am really looking forward to the outdoor season," she said. "I still have a lot of improving to do."

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The column I might have written

2012-01-06T11:18:00.007-05:00

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

2011-12-31T09:00:00.003-05:00

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)

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.

Just for fun 2011

2011-12-25T08:58:00.002-05:00

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

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 "what-ifs" of 2012

2011-12-19T08:59:00.005-05:00

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

The politics of division

2011-12-05T21:12:00.008-05:00

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)

===================================

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.

Occupy the Lazy Boy!

2011-11-26T09:59:00.004-05:00

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)

Mad enough to protest - OWS

2011-11-11T10:13:00.004-05:00

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)

Failed expectations

2011-11-06T08:33:00.003-05:00

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

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Considering Correctness

2011-10-29T09:10:00.001-04:00

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)

[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

2011-10-23T08:13:00.003-04:00

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

The 9-9-9-9 Solutions

2011-10-22T09:36:00.002-04:00

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.

* * * * * * * * *

Flea Party revolution!

2011-10-15T20:14:00.004-04:00

'Flea Party' revolution!

Originally published October 14, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

Viva la revolucion! I for one am happy that what had been Occupy Wall Street, the protest group, is stepping out. The activism is healthy. The conversations generated are productive; what's missing is a sense that they understand the context of their own complaints and disappointments.

Of course most of the rallying cries are still wildly diffused and confused; some conflict with each other. A general sense of anger is unifying until they get it right. Greed and corruption in our corporations and financial institutions seem to be central.

None of the "how we got here" happened by accident. Much of it was broadcast in print and on television -- in the open. The stock market ride that this propelled was capitalized on by the parents of the protesters, and funded their higher educations in many cases.

"The rich have too much money!" is another popular slogan for signs. The concentration of wealth among the innovative, creative and risk-takers is a function of how needfully greedy our capitalist system is, however. It's the incentive for all to work harder to get their piece of the action.

Many of the original protesters did form pictures that conjured up visions of the old Vietnam protests for peace. Younger white kids wearing ratty old knit skullcaps is now their crown of thorns. The derogatory term "Flea Party" used to label them is an obvious bow to Tea Party. Despite Obama adviser Al Sharpton's assertions to the contrary, blacks, Hispanics, and Asians are now noticeably absent.

Coordination of these revolutionary-styled protests is routinely made via Apple tablets and iPhones. This is strange, as the price points are for elites, and the late Steve Jobs certainly ran a successfully greedy corporation. Yes, they need to work on that image thing.

In Frederick Wednesday there will have been a "Jobs, not cuts" rally by the time of this column's publication. MoveOn.org organizers are capitalizing on the pull of the "Flea Party" to promote their sacred cow, the president's jobs bill.

Folks, good jobs are not a right that can be protested for. Do look for the forces behind sending them overseas. Good jobs come to those who work hard for them.

FLASH: Democrats in Congress have already sided with Republicans in voting down the legislation, reducing it as a partisan issue.

But do let others glom onto the budding protest generation, home of the 1 percent vs the 99 percent slogan. Something about the too few having too much; what share of taxes seems lost on this convenient equation, though?

One blog by activist Erick Erickson offers a numerical alternative, "We are the 53%," tossing the numbers right back. This is the percent of Americans paying any income taxes; working a job as a function.

The motto of the 53 percent seems to be "work for what you want" as opposed to the "complain that you don't have enough" used by the other side.

It's called capitalism; open to all comers.

Steven R. Berryman

writes from Frederick.

(srbmgr@comcast.net)

Clean Up Wall Street!

2011-10-11T07:55:00.002-04:00

Clean Up Wall Street!

Steven R. Berryman

[from TheTentacle 10/10/2011]

Occupy Wall Street, the “movement,” is now all the rage. I’m all for protests, and this group gets my sympathy. As these things are cyclical, I can’t wait for them to get back to burning bras! Ah, the memories…

“Hey, honey, you wanna go out for dinner, play some tennis, or go out marching for awhile?”

Where the original “flash-mob” – of 12 – came from is up to debate, but when the cops hit them with tear gas, the photos got onto YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter fast. What the newer mobs were protesting was amorphous early on, but seemed to be heart-felt.

Plus, it was a great way to meet girls!

Protest movements can be fun, even with a coherent political platform unresolved. See and be seen, have a voice plus have the attention of microphones and TV cameras.

Being a rebel is cool; Mom and Dad never paid us this much attention!

We know we need to “change,” but what happened the last time we struck out for change – blindly – in 2008? We got a president who can’t even manage to run on his record in the next election; instead of something new, we got everything old, including endless distractions from America’s real problems, and solutions we knew would fail.

We also squandered billions of “stimulus” dollars of your money to rescue Wall Street and banks, instead of rescuing jobs. Don’t these people read newspaper – online or the folding kind?

When will the protesters – texting or writing on their computer tablets and smart phones – realize that they are the Obama Left, and promoted him into office? The reward was null prosecutions on Wall Street, and placement of Wall Street insiders throughout this administration, and into policy-making-plus-oversight positions.

And by the way, my patriotic protesters, your smart communication devices – certainly at that price – were provided to you courtesy of your greedy corporations, and the globalization that took your parents jobs to China and India.

First, we need to recognize that we are the problem that we protest. Of course, there is greed, corruption, America gone wrong, and a broken two-party political system. But without a coherent message, the blind protests only serve to make themselves feel better, that they are doing something, anything!

And young movements, no matter the origin, when left to fester start to get smelly, and become susceptible to hijacking for the political gains of others. We see it in this case, with the ACORN types being sent in; labor union members come by bus and represent such known patriotic protesters as the New York Port Authority.

And notice that the corporately funded help with food, first aid, and communication services evidently supporting the live-in “we-ain’t-gonna-leave” hard core of the group, a.k.a. Occupy Wall Street. Strangely, money funneled into this cultural phenomenon can be lined back to the White House donors list. Coincidence?

Distraction!

Great pictures are now emerging from the streets of downtown New York City, showing the aftermath of the continuing organic rally. Mountains of trash and moldy mattresses pile up. Tent city, man.

And what makes this a growing movement, aside from the fungus, is that many are joining the movement simply to find out what it is and wants. I’m okay with that to a point…

Where the comparable movement of the Tea Party had similar origins, one of the main – and telling – differences is one of human hygiene. Tea Party wanted to save something worth saving, and get back to some fundamental American roots and principles.

Tea Party did not protest for the entertainment value, or because they had nothing better to do. They didn’t get arrested, foment civil disobedience, and defecate on police cars. In fact, all of the records noticed that Tea protests were marked for the orderliness, salutes to the flag, and cleaning up their own trash.

Tea Partyers “left nothing but footprints.” They are improvers, not detractors.

IF Occupy Wall Street wants to have an impact, first they need to figure out who their real enemy is, and honestly evaluate what to do about it. They can start by cleaning up their act, and then themselves…

…in order to be ready for Election 2012.

srbmgr@gmail.com

Advertisers here do not necessarily agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by the individual columnist appearing on The Tentacle.

Occupation nation

2011-10-08T10:09:00.003-04:00

'Occupation-nation'

Originally published October 07, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

Eating the rich seems to be the core of the plan to wrest positive political attention back to the floundering Obama 2012 campaign. Filmmaker Michael Moore visited Frederick's Weinberg Center last week for a one-night stand, reinforcing the class warfare.

Moore earns millions of dollars for himself in a capitalist system that he routinely complains about, and hides under an old everyman's baseball cap.

Of course, the avant-garde Occupation Wall Street movement has suddenly come to life and is fully supported by both Moore and the Obama campaign. It's in the strategy to go back and find the energy they left behind by blaming the system, and claiming underdog status.

Occupation Wall Street claimed 700 protesters recently arrested on the Brooklyn Bridge, where they were demonstrating against corporate greed. Promises of more of the same soon followed. Their conflicting protest signs demonstrated this to be a nascent if emerging proposition.

Filmed reasons to protest included ideas such as "Let's turn all government authority over to Obama for a while, and allow his supreme authority to lead us"; and "Who needs the Constitution; it just gets in the way."

On Keith Olbermann's show "Countdown," Moore said, as reported by Real Clear Politics: "There really isn't anything driving this other than what Wall Street has done and what those who are in charge of our economy have done."

At that moment, I wondered if Moore fully understood that his president owns the economy, and is in charge, and that "what Wall Street has done" is driven by congressional oversight!

OK, now I know that they are just getting started, and have not gotten the platform fully orchestrated, but I hope that Occupation Wall Street gets some inside economist soon; it's truly embarrassing.

And that presidential "underdog" label thing: This old hat was grasped by the new Obama from the clutches of commentator George Stephanopoulos in a softball interview. When asked if he was now an underdog candidate, based upon opinion polls, economic statistics, etc., he said yes barely an instant after what seemed to be a set-up question.

Now, last time I checked, underdogs don't achieve that status only after having squandered enormous political capital. Underdogs usually don't enjoy the microphone of a bully pulpit!

Our new "occupation nation," of course, is conveniently coming into fruition to serve the new campaign battle plan. Reportedly, even public union friends from the New York Port Authority joined in the protestation fun. This kind of support does not come at random.

Look for more creation of straw boogeymen as Halloween approaches, including support for wealth redistribution, as opposed to personified evil corporations. That corporations and Wall Street itself act in financial self-interest seems to be a shock to our new cadre of world changing protesters.

It remains to be seen whether the media will evaluate the occupation-nation phenomenon as some fringe group without merit -- the way that they have attempted to marginalize the tea party movement.

Steven R. Berryman

writes from Frederick.

(srbmgr@comcast.net)

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/opinion/display_columnist.htm?StoryID=126856

srbmgr@comcast.net

Waiting to be Saved

2011-10-06T09:57:00.003-04:00

Waiting To Be Saved

Steven R. Berryman

[from The Tentacle of Oct. 3rd, 2011]

Here we go again. Americans currently stare at their navels, collectively waiting to be saved by having the right administration or party in power when it’s “their turn” to pull strings after Election 2012.

Republicans suffer a field of savior-wannabes made up of politician-masochists who value fame and limelight in campaigning over the negatives of an undignified contest characterized as a “gotcha-slam-fest” that the opposition enjoys most.

Democrats remain unified at the primary level as Hillary and hubby have been bought out of the fight. Nobody wants to derail the golden goose that lays the stimulus eggs. Certainly not Wall Street or public employee unions.

Texas Rep. Ron Paul seems strangely isolated from his Libertarianism – or even Tea Party – cult leader status. “Money bombs” and bedding with the GOP has him approaching sell-out status compared with what had been a righteous independent run.

Staffers have co-opted candidates yet again!

And if there were an actual Tea Party, as opposed to a loose collection of quasi-operational philosophies, surely they would produce leadership material to save us from the perils of our own fallible human nature. People must be governed in order to allow us our self-control!

Stop waiting for salvation by others, America. This world is your party, not theirs. You must have learned by now that simply trading offices and officers every term or two has not stymied systemic corruption of our laws and institutions.

For God’s sake, we allowed the president to pass healthcare legislation ostensibly to save us money, and refused to stop frivolous lawsuits from jacking costs by dealing with tort reform. Trial lawyers were not taken to task by an obedient media or an opposition party.

Wall Street, bankers, speculators, and The Fed were allowed to fleece the national retirement nest egg without so much as a good show trial. At least in the old days we had Watergate and Iran-Contra hearings to demonstrate our passion. The prosecution has been bought off in this case.

But just wait for “four more years” to make everything better and save us. Surely Barack Obama is saving his best stuff for the last term. He’s making us wait as his entrée to another term. Who’d want to mess that up?

Or will New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie or Oprah save us from a presidency without merit? Somebody must be out there, just waiting in some bus for the right time to lead us from the wilderness. Sarah Palin, I know…

It’s not the people who hold the solutions; it’s the behaviors that do. Until there is a national sense of accountability toward our leadership, we are doomed. We have been conditioned to expect less and to take excuses well.

Surely the next administration will introduce a Department of Expectation Management!

srbmgr@gmail.com

Original Link: http://www.thetentacle.com/ShowArticle.cfm?mydocid=4660

Advertisers here do not necessarily agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by the individual columnist appearing on The Tentacle.

Racism is worse?

2011-10-02T19:46:00.004-04:00

Racism is worse?

Originally published September 30, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

Actor Morgan Freeman asserted that racism is worse in America now that Barack Obama is president. The quote comes from's Piers Morgan's CNN comment last Friday. Freeman, the beloved star of "The Shawshank Redemption" and "Driving Miss Daisy" is well-respected, but is he playing God again?

His comment made headlines for days on the Drudge Report and YouTube, but why do we rely on the Hollywood crowd for our political sway and enlightenment on human affairs? Well, Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger aside.

Freeman had nothing to back up his point, but went straight into digging at the tea party for "doing whatever it takes to get Obama out of office."

Last time I looked, the tea party movement was a diverse, open group of loosely affiliated citizens who are marching to the drum of less spending, smaller government, state sovereignty and returning power to the people. I believe that even Martin Luther King would applaud that level of activism.

The tea party was founded as a grass-roots movement uniformly against rising taxation levels, polarized by the reckless Obamacare plan shoveled at the American people.

Minorities were fully represented, despite clever camera work by a biased media.

Then followed the invented spitting incident, and branding the group terrorists. Sorry. It's not so easy to derail a real people's movement.

But, back to racism as defined as the focus on a particular racial or minority group, I think that this administration has some explaining to do. The Washington Post reported Sunday in an above-the-fold article that the desperation in the continuing Obama presidential campaign is forcing a power play to get black, Hispanic, Asian and other minority votes as a centerpiece of their strategy:

"The program, called Operation Vote, underscores how the tide has turned for Obama, whose 2008 brand was built on calls to unite 'red and blue America.' Then, he presented himself as a politician who could transcend traditional partisan divisions, andmany white centrists were drawn to the coalition that helped elect the country's first black president."

So is it possible that the Obama campaign is already resorting to playing the race card this early in election 2012? Considering that the man cannot run on his record, I believe this to be the case.

Remembering back to campaign 2008, the forces at play included a pervasive "anybody but Bush" attitude, combined with the thrill of having America's first black -- or minority -- president elected. Since then, black unemployment and national poverty levels have skyrocketed under the Obama presidency. The upcoming election will be about competence in leadership.

If a focus on race has returned, it's by choice. An angry population is easier to motivate and control. But in what was hailed as a "post-racial" world, are we now more likely to wrongly use race as a weapon of divisiveness?

Racism in America, per se, is not worse; it's just been dragged back out of the closet for partisan purposes.

Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick.

srbmgr@comcast.net

[original content is on http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/opinion/display_columnist.htm?StoryID=126626]

Fox-News, Google, & YouTube

2011-10-02T19:35:00.002-04:00

Fox-News, Google & YouTube

Steven R. Berryman

[from TheTentacle of 9/26/2011]

As if we needed more of a signal that politics and the media were combining with entertainment for your viewing enlightenment, enter the Fox-News/Google/YouTube GOP debates in Florida last week.

Jon Stewart, of The Daily Show, could have been a moderator for this venture without missing a beat from his routine; we suffered the deadpan Chris Wallace instead. Great lines were mixed with bad performances in an uneven script, but in the end, the general debates purpose was served, and candidates revealed themselves.

Of course, the real goal for Republicans was to add needed specificity to the ABO, or “Anybody But Obama,” strategy. From my observances of this debate, we will still need the active participation of our president in this…

And for a time it was entertaining…even as the prop of fuzzy YouTube videos wears thin. Was it populist or a set-up?

The comedy did get old with far too many “there he goes again” moments. Who is the real Mitt Romney, etc? And I don’t care about your book. Everybody has a book!

This debate was singularly successful in targeting President Barack Obama as the end result of the primary contest, although the fratricide of taking each other down has a cost.

Best line – was the planned joke by former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson – as stolen and unattributed to Rush Limbaugh – that “My neighbor’s two dogs have created more shovel-ready jobs than has this president.”

Best fratricide – defined as self destruction within the party – was, of course, between the frontrunners Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Governor Perry absorbed the major hit by explaining his position in support of in-state tuition for illegals in Texas. His excuse was essentially that it was the right thing to do for the children who don’t get to choose their parents.

This great logic was not lost on Minnesota Congressman Michelle Bachmann, who “got” the whole big-picture element of the “magnet state” continuing to draw to our illegal-immigration problem. She looked strong here in an otherwise weak performance. She wants to build the fence; Governor Perry may have just lost his edge to Romney…

Except from the hit that Mitt took: …meanwhile, back at the healthcare debate, the convergence of RomneyCare and ObamaCare proved that should Governor Romney become the Republican candidate for president, this issue will be of no benefit to the party.

And then you’d get to the Christian conservatives who don’t want to approach his Mormon faith as even derivative of Christianity!

Herman Cain seemed the most sincere in his pronounced faith of Tea Party principles, and taking full advantage of his businessman background as Godfather’s Pizza CEO. That he is a five-year cancer survivor contrasted sharply with Governor Perry’s other problem with governing principles: having supported a requirement that all Texas girls take shots of Gardasil in preemption of cervical cancer. Not so Libertarian a position.

Then there’s lumbering and steady Newt Gingrich. In a grandfatherly way he reminded his peers on stage that President Obama and his disastrous economy is the real enemy, not each other. He wore Ronald Reagan on his bona fides in every possible combination but will not be a contender.

Ron Paul….was there.

Unfortunately, Texas Congressman Paul has been so uniformly and consistently marginalized by the media that he comes off as Pat Paulson with credentials. He says the right things in a forceful way…and it has no lasting value in the primary.

But in the end-game, the GOP will send out the person best suited to fulfill the beat-Obama strategy, regardless of the pesky details of personal ideology plus personal baggage.

The real question now is whether former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has already cut a deal to enter the race at a fortunate time as spoiler to skew the results of Perry vs. Romney.

srbmgr@gmail.com

Advertisers here do not necessarily agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by the individual columnist appearing on The Tentacle.

For the rest, please click: Fox-News, Google & YouTube

srbmgr@gmail.com

Consumer confidence

2011-09-27T11:42:00.003-04:00

Consumer Confidence

Originally published September 23, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

There is cash and unspent personal equity sitting on the sidelines in the pockets of consumers, even to this day, despite reports of sagging "consumer confidence" statistics.

Visiting the Windy City, Chicago, last week as part of a retail-commando team comprising appliance and electronics powerhouse HHGregg team members from throughout Maryland, I witnessed an economic boomlet. Despite the bad economic press -- virtually a media-fed depression -- 14 new stores over 30,000 square feet in scope grand-opened simultaneously.

The competition for sales is so tough in this Midwestern market that the local Sears operation sent pamphleteers on logoed Segway scooters and a large truck to advertise in our parking lot! "In your face" advertising ruled the days from both sides of the game, absolutely inescapable on TV. This was a retail war.

The winners of the competition: consumers!

The event was a major success by all measures; consumers smiled, and tons of customer transactions took place. I was stationed with computers, tablets and cameras, enabling hundreds of conversations. Meeting the good folks of the Chicago area was my pleasure; they reminded me of the good Fredericktonians where I reside.

What the people have in common between the vastly separated cities is a fierce pride in their community, and where they came from. Spirits run high, and it's also a great sports town there.

One difference is born of the sheer size of Chicago; it allows for cities within cities. Entire enclaves of Polish, Greek, Latino, African, Eastern European and Indo-Pakistani-descended peoples came, all in different stages of assimilation.

The energy was amazing to witness, entire families shopping together with smiles of confidence on their faces. They reveled in pride of ownership. They knew that the dollars they traded for goods -- both wanted as well as needed -- were enhancing their quality of life.

Some had resided in the area for generations, others for weeks, but all found their favorite big-screen TVs, laptops and refrigerators. At times, seemingly everyone left with a box or a receipt for delivery.

Yeah, yeah, I know that this sounds like a commercial, but I've been in and around this industry since June 1976 and know what I see. Years of transactions and learning the psychology of the market made me aware that we now live in unique times, where retail giants vie for the action with heart and soul to the point of putting the low performers out of business.

These are great times to be a savvy consumer, and before the great -- inevitable -- wave of inflation takes hold, I suggest that folks examine their circumstances and buy what they need and want at truly bargain prices.

What I witnessed gave me hope that those with a smart business plan can prosper in any economy -- sometimes via sheer willpower combined with planning and guts. There is still value in risk-taking when the strategy matches conditions on the ground.

Steven R. Berryman

writes from Frederick.

(srbmgr@comcast.net)

Fox-News, Google, & YouTube

2011-09-27T11:35:00.003-04:00

Fox-News, Google & YouTube

Steven R. Berryman

from The Tentacle, Sept. 26th 2011

As if we needed more of a signal that politics and the media were combining with entertainment for your viewing enlightenment, enter the Fox-News/Google/YouTube GOP debates in Florida last week.

And for a time it was entertaining…even as the prop of fuzzy YouTube videos wears thin. Was it populist or a set-up?

The comedy did get old with far too many “there he goes again” moments. Who is the real Mitt Romney, etc? And I don’t care about your book. Everybody has a book!... (ctd. on the link)

http://www.thetentacle.com/ShowArticle.cfm?mydocid=4645

srbmgr@gmail.com

Link

http://regularfolksunited.com/index.php?tab=article_view&article_id=6202

That Jobs Speech

2011-09-20T13:23:00.005-04:00

That jobs speech

Originally published September 16, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

Where are the prominent economists touting President Barack Obama's much-anticipated "jobs speech" now that we finally have a bill? For instance, can we confirm that unemployment will go below 9 percent by Election Day 2012, or are we just hoping for the best?

Regular readers of this column will indeed find this administration's rush familiar, as in the past with the health care overhaul: We must pass this bill! The urgency is that of a campaign speech, when instead the urgency should be to begin formal debate of the merits of the plan.

On the face of it, we will now suffer a much smaller "stimulus bill" than the last one, which some said was too small itself. We are reminded of the definition of insanity at this moment.

Not until we take the political agenda out of economic recovery plans will we see the unemployment rate budge.

Unions, schools, teachers and their bureaucracies have cause to like the plan. That they typically vote Democratic is no accident.

The president claims 10,000 new construction jobs in Ohio alone as a long-term solution. Well, Mr. O, heavy school construction first demands approved blueprints, certified by engineers. Then coordination with school systems' schedules is a must. The duration of a renovation takes place over summer vacation, when school is out, on a 12-week schedule. One or two five-man crews can do the job per trade. This does not add up to a new economy.

I've renovated seven Baltimore schools as a subcontractor, having bid 20, and know the drill.

One of the new promises is that "the plan is paid for." If we really do have that much fat that we can live without in the existing budget, then why not just reduce it instead of redistributing it away?

A big chunk of cash will be used to replace the plan's keystone giveaways: payroll tax reductions to companies that hire, and to the workers themselves.

A caller, introduced as a business owner, to Blaine Young's radio show on Tuesday summed up the bill's impact on him and his small business this way: "If I don't have the customers to justify adding employees to serve them, then why would this bill cause me to hire?" In other words, without the demand for any service, why waste any payroll at all?

Restaurants and retail chains don't over-hire because they get a break on labor; they rely on statistical data and recent customer traffic trends to determine their staffing levels.

Then, of course, a big wad of the newly proposed stimulus cash will go to bankrolling more unemployment benefits. Where is the retraining plan for the chronically unemployed, President O?

When will we address the real reasons for the demise of the middle class, such as losing our entire manufacturing base, and shipping jobs overseas? These can be reversed.

But not with GE chief Jeffrey Immelt, presidential adviser to Obama's jobs council, building his own factories in China.

Steven R. Berryman

writes from Frederick.

(srbmgr@comcast.net)

The 9/11/11 Attack!

2011-09-14T12:34:00.008-04:00

The 9/11/11 Attack

Steven R. Berryman

[published in The Tentacle, both Sept. 11th & 12th, 2011.]

Hope I’m wrong about a new or copycat attack on “Patriot Day” Sunday; this column was written on Saturday 9/10/11 in anticipation of the 10th anniversary of the past suicide bombings. As of this writing, rumors circulate; advice is cheap and plentiful. Here’s mine!

There could be one of two possible lead paragraphs for my regular Monday column onTheTentacle.com: “All of the hype was a waste, and all remained as it was, with no bombings, violence, or attacks to commemorate the successful attacks on the anniversary of the WTC/Pentagon/Shanksville downing attacks. Sorry to have added to the paranoia.”

Or:

“I told you that an attack was imminent, based upon the sheer probability and laws of physics involved.”

I warned you about the detonation of a dirty nuclear bomb, the machine-gunning of a Metro train, and bombings at gas stations, grocery stores, movie theaters, and utility sites.”

Of course, our “soft targets” remain exposed, as we are a free nation, as opposed to a police state, and value our liberty and an open society. But that said, thank God that schools were closed on a Sunday with such a possibility of evil!

My heart-of-hearts goes with this latter scenario as my prediction, as much as I don’t want to become a larger version of what Israel has become.

The cost of freedom has become eternal vigilance. The United States of America is far too large to be protected by even a state-of-the-art security force containing marshals, sheriffs, deputies, and the various apparatus of the Department Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National Security Agency, and the military, etc.

Individual citizens must be prepared to take care of themselves, as we do not know what peril may come our way. Did the Britishers in London have a fix for their unexpected riots? Could civilization be undermined or compromised by some devious sneak attack over the Internet or “false flag,” or other “back door” channel?

Other successful terrorist attacks have been characterized by their sheer creativity, willingness to change and adapt, and probability of finding enough of the disenfranchised in humanity to be willing to kill themselves in the process.

Many successive waves of attack have been thoroughly unique; this is a strategic advantage as preparations for the unexpected are always lagging reality. They know that....[ctd on the Link]

Here's a link to the rest of the column: The 9/11/11 Attack

srbmgr@gmail.com

Postscript: A special thanx to all of the services that contributed to the fact that this was NOT a worst case, I told you so column: FBI, NSA, DIA, State Police, NEST, DHS, BATFE, etc...... Sincerely, the author.

Each Article contained on this website is COPYRIGHTED by The Octopus^sm LLC. All rights reserved. No Part of this website and/or its contents may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means - graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or information storage and retrieval systems, without the expressed written permission of The Tentacle^sm, and the individual authors. Pages may be printed for personal use, but may not be reproduced in any publication - electronic or printed - without the express written permission of The Tentacle^sm; and the individual authors.Each Article contained on this website is COPYRIGHTED by The Octopus^sm LLC. All rights reserved. No Part of this website and/or its contents may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means - graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or information storage and retrieval systems, without the expressed written permission of The Tentacle^sm, and the individual authors. Pages may be printed for personal use, but may not be reproduced in any publication - electronic or printed - without the express written permission of The Tentacle^sm; and the individual authors.

9/11 comments, please

2011-09-10T09:23:00.004-04:00

9/11 comments, please

Originally published September 09, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

I believe that an interactive version of this column is in order for the 10th anniversary of the suicide attacks on the World Trade Center towers, the Pentagon, and the patriotic downing of a flight over Shanksville, Pa.

After I toss in a few "incendiaries" of my own, please feel free to go to our website, www.fredericknewspost.com, to look up this column -- under "Opinion" -- and post your own observations, revelations and remembrances with a "comment." [Ed. note: Click on the "Post your comment" link below or to the right.]

This I propose in the -- short-lived -- spirit of shared common experience in the aftermath of 9/11. There was a palpable but temporary stage of cooperativeness among us. America was unified for a common purpose, and together with much of the world community, with a common sense of loss and outrage.

The French proclaimed: "Today, we are all Americans." Iranians lit candles in ceremonial commiseration.

By contrast, consider the age of aggressive divisiveness that characterizes the Obama administration. Neither Bush nor Obama are "uniters."

We began to lose our edge by losing bin Laden in the mountains of Tora Bora, and then we invaded Iraq by pre-planned "mistake," but that's for another column.

America was in denial about the attacks on that crisp September day 10 years ago. It must be an accidental crash, thought most, until the second jet fire-balled at 400 mph, wings angled to create the most destruction from onboard fuel. Some jumped from WTC-2, choosing falling over flames.

Bush was informed; the video shows him clearly not comprehending the magnitude of the crisis. America was under bombardment from an unknown enemy; he kept reading to schoolchildren for a time.

We were instantly "at war against terrorism." This was all new to us, and asymmetrical in nature; we had an embedded enemy, as opposed to a nation we could retaliate against in revenge. Our nukes were useless. We were at war with an ideology, at war with militant elements of a hijacked Muslim religion.

I was new to the construction industry that day. In Gaithersburg our small firm picked up events on CNN as they first occurred. We had crews of men, including my brother-in-law Dave, working a State Department job. There were reports -- fortunately false -- that they had also been bombed.

Cellphones failed. The FAA ordered all commercial air traffic down to the nearest airport available. An F-15 fighter later roared over our offices on patrol.

When Dave finally escaped from D.C., we walked around a neighborhood to clear our heads, witnessing the eerily empty skies; it was like the End Times. My sister Susan was first to say that this day would change the world forever.

American peace and security had been violated by a coordinated group of Saudi Arabian nationals. We shall never forget. I have found it cathartic to put thoughts into words, allowing the memories to crystallize, possibly to be passed along to the younger generations.

Check out www.thetentacle.com/ShowArticle.cfm?mydocid=4606 for more on this topic.

Steven R. Berryman

writes from Frederick.

9/11 Patriotic Lessons

2011-09-06T08:06:00.002-04:00

9/11 Patriotic Lessons

Steven R. Berryman

[from The Tentacle 9/5/2011]

Why do the powers that control such things insist that we remember the anniversaries of the 9/11-suicide attack on the World Trade Center twin towers, Pentagon, and Capital as “Patriot Day?”

As we approach the historic 10th anniversary of the potentially decapitating plot, the lessons available are certainly more important than are the semantics and spin born of the events. It was about victims, heroes, and events that changed the world forever; but do beware the spin, and absorb the correct lessons.

The “patriots” were the ones that took the real lessons to heart.

Patriotism itself is a spirit, and not a political position or anointed condition of some type. I’m continually disappointed that the left now maligns the term, and that it has been misused tag for legislation, and diminished as some form of jingoistic arrogance.

Those murdered sinfully as airplanes became missiles were victims, not patriots. The heroes were those who successfully fought back in the skies over Shanksville, PA, and the first responders who saved lives in the aftermath of crumbling buildings in New York and just outside Washington. Firemen, police, and bystanders rose selflessly to the occasions.

I’d like to believe that the above heroism was a spontaneous connection with the patriotism that made America great to begin with – sort of the antithesis of political correctness.

Lessons learned include: Yes, the very expensive American security apparatus failed miserably. Leads at the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Security Agency were missed; entire programs proven to be toothless paper tigers.

Our response was bad. We added a bureaucratic latter of “Homeland Security,” ignored much of the advice of the 9/11 Commission, and haggled for weeks on a name for the Department of Homeland Security boss. Just another Washington turf war.

Then an over-reactive FBI took assets away from attention to criminal enterprises such as Wall Streeter Bernie Madoff, and corrupt investment firms, and America had a cool trillion plus dollars stolen; mainly not prosecuted to this day!

The attack on 9/11 was an attempt to derail the power and influence of America and to set it off against itself. It worked. We added Transportation Security Agency screening in the most inefficient way, when all we needed to do was to study the known successes of the Israeli programs.

MRI technology for airports proved to be a huge financial windfall to administration-connected manufacturers. Many people have now given up on modern air travel all together due to the delays, inconveniences, and assault on personal privacy that is closely coveted by many.

9/11 itself was proof positive that a modern religion can be infiltrated, corrupted and used as a hiding place for evil. Political correctness continues to provide cover to this day, and peer pressure from within Islam continues to keep many from speaking out against the hijacking of Mohamed.

The real patriotism that I witnessed was more than the F-15 fighters scrambled in the days that followed; more than our military response, certainly in Iraq.

I witnessed a general cooperativeness of American neighbors with each other, and with other nations, that I had only seen in World War II newsreels. I saw more people coming together with common purpose born of events, with a common will to make things better and to begin a process to right ourselves.

What I perceived was subtle, and short lived; ‘twas about a month in duration I distinctly recall…before political correctness, and the hijacking of the situation became politics as usual. Opportunity was squandered in many respects.

Political correctness began to have its day. We began to divisively bash each other once again in partisan politics. Never let a good crisis go to waste.

Viewed backwards through a clear prism, lessons from 9/11 can still be reviewed and built upon, but only if honestly reviewed and applied.

The patriotic value resides therein.

srbmgr@gmail.com

Advertisers here do not necessarily agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by the individual columnist appearing on The Tentacle.

The original link to content is: 9/11 Patriotic Lessons

srbmgr@gmail.com

Spend our way out?

2011-09-03T08:36:00.005-04:00

Spend our way out?

Originally published September 02, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

Having spent the past week suffering an earthquake, a hurricane and a colon exam, my terrible sense of foreboding continues with the president freshly back in town from his Martha's Vineyard luxury vacation, ostensibly to fix jobs -- 'bout time.

What will be in this newest bragged-about magical mystery jobs plan?

And if it is such a winner, then why wait? Why was there no urgency in getting it to the people? If jobs creation were "job one," and our leader thinks about fixing the economy first thing every day and last thing each night, then why wasn't Congress ordered back?

Answer: Because his plan was to make a plan, simply buying time.

But absent some form of spending or taxation initiative, I'll betcha a cup-a-joe that only agenda-driven fixes are considered. In short, real solutions -- such as helping small business, taking steps to restore confidence, and getting banks to lend to developers again -- won't be present.

Do look for stimulus, but by any other name it's still paying off a credit card with another credit card. The other ammo is spent.

The Fed can't drop interest rates any more without paying people to borrow money. We can't prime financial pumps without borrowing at a true accounting cost that wipes out the benefit.

How about a "national investment bank," or a fund developed to entice banks to lend?

Sorry, all of the real solutions involve political pain; this administration has no tolerance for it, already polling at low ebb, political capital already fully spent on Obamacare.

We will need to either grow our way out of debt and deficit, or inflate our way out. That's a finite law of economics. We are doing the latter now.

The single largest loss of American equity had been from perceived home value appreciation -- "paper gains" that were once creditworthy. With 6 million homes under water, their current value under what is owed on the mortgage, we suffer in many ways.

Consumer confidence is dramatically low with no backstop of home wealth, thus creating a compounded impact on the entire service economy.

Federal bank regulators sit on bankruptcy proceedings -- in part for valid cause -- but stranding bargain houses on the market. This further maintains low housing values.

Then, based upon the above, and no plan, nobody wants to build houses or offices, further depressing construction in general. If we had a plan, some might risk new projects.

Why not consolidate groups of bank-owned houses and rent them out to get them off the market?

Instead, look for an FDR-style "shotgun approach." That means when you don't know what to do, or don't want to invest against your own political agenda, you just try a bunch of stuff. In hindsight, however, more than half of the "alphabet soup" projects by Roosevelt failed, and prolonged real recovery in America.

And demonizing the tea party is but a planned distraction.

Steven R. Berryman

srbmgr@comcast.net

Engulfed by Irene

2011-08-30T10:47:00.004-04:00

Engulfed by Irene

Steven R. Berryman

from The Tentacle of August 29, 2011

Al Roker and Joe Bastardi are now the media icons of America. On Saturday and Sunday, while absorbing hurricane Irene, we all hunkered-down in our safest places and watched these weather video journalist he-men flex their muscles, leaning into the wind for emphasis.

President Obama found a great photo-op sitting in the captain’s chair of the National Hurricane Command Center, and lectured FEMA. Not having a chance to catch the audio, a good caption could have been: “Now…I’m in charge here.”

Fortunately, I’m a survivalist kinda guy, so didn’t have much prep to worry about myself. I did scribe a reminder to others in my Frederick News-Post column Friday.

Lines at Wal-Mart and Giant for toilet paper and milk were still epic. There were rumors – unfounded – that gas would run out due to emergency travels and people topping off tanks just in case. After all the hype, it all seemed boringly well orchestrated. The worst case scenarios never happened.

Saturday morning I had caught up on watching the weathermen-in-full-glory just before leaving for work at hh gregg’s. By that time it had become pretty clear that the monster CAT 3 hurricane was diffusing into watery mush, and that this would be chiefly a rain and flood and surge event; scanning my cable channels for the action at the Outer Banks, North Carolina, the media tone seemed almost depressed that their videograhpers could not shoot some real storm damage. You know, houses losing roofs, or schools floating away, that sort of thing.

Safely at work a bit later, I was surprised at just how normal the day actually was, from a retailer’s perspective. Selling laptop computers and flat screen TVs, dishwashers and cameras had a strange normalcy to it. I guess that the consumer rituals are calming to some.

Of course, in the mid-Atlantic region, we are fairly numb to major earthly events now, having just had the big Virginia quake that reverberated the same area as had Irene. Just staying hunkered – my new favorite word – was enough as events unfurled. For me, my preparation involved a trip into the path of the big tropical storm to bring son Paul home from Salisbury University.

Paul had been there to begin classes and was setting up a tiny home for the semester.

Knowing the potential for evacuation snarls in both directions, I wanted to spare everyone the unwanted road trip. Paul wanted to “man it out,” and I wanted a plan-B that I could trust, as Salisbury University rests on low land with water on two sides.

Surely there was a college campus plan for emergency stay at the popular university for allowing off-campus students to shelter in place at one of the many well-endowed brick structures. Not.

The Friday before the storm, I had the vice president of Student Affairs Dane Foust on the phone to get some reassurances to this effect; he was nice enough to return my call after his emergency meeting.

His emergency “plan” was to tell the kids to go home. He mentioned a Greyhound Bus station, but nobody could assure a seat. The plan was to ask the students in their charge to go to the local shelters in town. Does anyone else have visions of the Superdome in New Orleans in the aftermath of Katrina? This was their plan?

After 15 minutes of discussing, suggesting, asking, threatening, and begging this defensive bureaucrat, I hung up on him – “interim-VP” indeed.

Of course, I then spent the entire day journeying to and from Salisbury to pick up Paul and his friend. I was thoroughly disgusted with the poor planning and bad decisions of this otherwise great school. The inconvenience of their employees and insurance liability had surely ruled the day. Not much of a message to the student body!

By contrast, Towson University – where my daughter is matriculating – is located just north of Baltimore, another water-surrounded port area, also in danger. The contrast part was their response to hurricane Irene. Not only did Towson take care of its students, but it opened its doors to the international workers escaping from Ocean City. Accepting their outbound busloads was the right thing to do, in keeping with the pioneering spirit of America.

That distinction was missed entirely.

srbmgr@gmail.com

Advertisers here do not necessarily agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by the individual columnist appearing on The Tentacle.

2011 PREPAREDNESS

2011-08-26T09:23:00.004-04:00

2011 preparedness

Originally published August 26, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

The restless earth just dished up a seismic event that nobody expected. Statistically it was a 200-year quake with a 5.8 preliminary rating, three miles beneath the surface.

It was a freak of nature when analyzed in the short term, but does the infrequency mean that we shouldn't prepare for the unexpected? Who remembers the 200-year double "snowmageddon" storm recently, my example number 2?

Taking stock of all the possible disasters may help get you motivated: a hurricane or tornado (there's one on the way), a subsequent flood (think Katrina), nuclear power plant disruptions (think Japan). Or, a biological emergency (infected cockroaches sliding through airlocks from Fort Detrick), a farm-contaminated water supply, or even air poisoned by the pyroclastic cloud of a new volcano.

We just took some of our own electrical plants offline as a precaution due to the unknown damage from the quake. Would your household have been OK with a long period without power?

How about a terrorist event, one that we've not seen before. What would you do if bin Laden's final revenge -- enacted automatically -- were to be an EMP bomb? This type of device could render anything with an unshielded microchip useless. No cellphones, no Internet access, no online bill paying or wire cash transfers; even car engines that die.

EMP, which is short for the physical phenomenon called "electromagnetic pulse," can be concentrated to disrupt anything electrical -- like an entire power grid -- by a quick overloading. This can be accomplished by a specialized nuclear device; the effects are well-known.

With the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks upcoming, do prepare for the worst. It may be just a panic-induced daylong drive in gridlock, but what if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time?

A lone-wolf terrorist operation could easily be afoot, simply out of a misguided tribute to bin Laden, or more likely, just taking advantage of the high-profile date: 9/11/11 for reasons of fame.

Take simple precautions: Have a kit in your car's trunk with some water, blankets and dry energy bars. Perhaps keep your old hiking boots and some outerwear, too. Duct tape and plastic sheeting are always valuable.

Have a plan for your immediate family on where to meet if there is a regional shutdown of transportation or communications. Children and the elderly need special consideration. Do you have extra supplies of critical medicines, and food for your pets?

History favors the prepared. Small investments can go a long way. For $40 each, get a couple of wind-up weather radios for emergency broadcast -- one for car, one for home. Buy your dry and canned staple foods a month in advance; this will double as an emergency cache. Plan for water needs. For the house, a few sheets of plywood, nails and sheet plastic.

Feel smart about it, despite some friendly ribbing you will get. The peace of mind will be worth it.

=======================================

Also see: for more detailed ideas:

http://mediahooker1.blogspot.com/2008/04/this-is-not-test-part-1.html

http://mediahooker1.blogspot.com/2008/04/this-is-not-test-part-2.html

srbmgr@comcast.net

No Insiders for President!

2011-08-17T07:51:00.003-04:00

No Insiders for President!

[from The Tentacle of August 15th 2011]

Steven R. Berryman

Based upon a sea of “throw the bums out” sentiments, and a bi-partisan/bi-cameral call for term-limits across the board, no current GOP primary contender could beat President Barack Obama for his second term.

I don’t care who thinks it’s their turn to be leading the Republicans – Mitt Romney – but this is about who could beat a powerful incumbent. Somebody needs to come out of left field at this point to save the day – a Chris Christie, or a Jeb Bush – otherwise we’ll have another John McCain flop campaign. One would have to merge all of the best salient qualities of at least two frontrunners to even get close to a winning package.

That said, the GOP strategy overall seems to be to hope President Obama continues to defeat himself, as in “Only Obama can beat Obama.” The economy would need to continue to fail for this to happen, and I refuse to take any part in that one!

So, for those of us who believe that the president is playing politics with our economy instead of fixing it, where do we go from here?

From a true local tea party perspective, I would say the solutions to our long-term economic woes come from inside tea party ideology.

At the risk of redundancy, these solutions include reduction in the size of government, and the current budgeted line items themselves – as opposed to cutting fuzzy future junk programs or cuts in programs never meant to be. Additionally, this includes faithfulness to the Founders original intentions in The Constitution, which would include the return of power to the state governments.

These solutions will go down hard in Democrat-controlled Maryland, where 25% of the population is immediately impacted by public spending and government doled jobs; a $300 billion defense-intelligence industry is supported here.

The Republicans siding with the Tea Party are your most sincere candidates. And …you know this is true because of the “attack mode” against what is trumped up to be a codified Tea Party, currently being conducted by a White House-directed basement boiler room operation, supported fully by their mainstream media provocateurs.

Gandhi’s quote: “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they attack you, then you win” is appropriate of this continuity.

It’s the win part that concerns me. First you need a candidate.

Newt Gingrich had the intellectual ability and was able to project his concepts, but crashed and burned. Chris Christie had the fearlessness and ability to sacrifice his personal position for saying what was right, and then took a cop out. Jeb Bush was the smarter of the two brothers and hopes for an easier 2016.

Too late by then.

And then there are the Iowa Straw Poll “winners,” this past weekend. Rep. Michele Bachmann (R., MN) may be working the hardest, but she also paid off the crowd with thousands of $30 tickets handed out selectively by her staff’s organization. By beating the real winner, Rep. Ron Paul (R., TX) by 200 votes, she proved that money can buy elections. Of course, President Obama will raise a billion dollars for the same reasons.

I’ve met Ms. Bachmann and heard an entire stump speech in which she didn’t mention the Tea Party even once. I doubt her sincerity, but applaud her tenacity. Reminds me of a national level Kathy Afzali, except that Kathy has embraced the Tea Party formally.

Herman Cain puts the best voice to Tea Party principles of any of the current candidates, but he is just not cut out for the job; not enough experience, excepting business. Note that Mr. Cain added jobs while former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney presided over corporate deconstruction during his career.

To top that off, Romneycare will prove to be the immovable object in a predictably self-defeating attempt for office. A viable candidate must be able to overthrow Obamacare.

And then there’s the wild card, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin: stalking the primary preambles via stealth helicopter; she jumps out every once in a while to see if she’s still recognized. At least she assumes the mantle of what is the Tea Party….but no guts, no glory.

I’m still watching the cornfields in left field to see who might be walking out to save the Republicans from some compromised mediocrity. But for an insider to win, they’d have to embrace the Tea Party.

srbmgr@gmail.com

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The original link to the source is: No Insiders for President!

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Government downgraded

2011-08-14T09:56:00.004-04:00

Government downgraded

Originally published August 12, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

It was a rating agency, Standard & Poor's, that reduced America's credit rating, but it was your elected government that got downgraded. I give them an AAF for their inaction on our debt crisis.

Legislation that could have restored confidence that we are taking steps to stop the bleeding was so weak that Wall Street immediately began to crash. Congress, in response, took a bow, called the deal imperfect and went on vacation.

The president and leader of our executive branch splits his time between fundraising for the Democrats (that must be some creative stump speech these days) and golfing. He hosted a barbecue along with music legend Stevie Wonder as the Taliban murdered 30 Navy SEALs from Team 6 in Afghanistan in their pointless insurgency.

The "full faith and credit" that we are missing is more than fiscal; it's about confidence in our current leadership's ability to take an honest, nonpartisan approach to jobs, our economic posture and monetary policy, foreign interests and alliances, and energy policy.

Jobs are not being created, welfare rolls are soaring, food and fuel prices are killing average Americans, and the middle class is disappearing.

In response to the real pressure of the day, the new Democratic talking points memo seems to include that "it's a tea party downgrade," as voiced by Sen. John Kerry on "Meet the Press" last Sunday. Right.

Well, at least that's a step up from calling the tea party "terrorists"!

As much as I would rather dine with the GOP than with those on the left side of the aisle, neither part of our dysfunctional two-party system will fix us, as I outline in my online column for The Tentacle, linked below:

www.tinyurl.com/competitiondistractspatriots

Folks, the tea party did not create your $15 trillion debt. They are on the solution side of our spending problem, although they have been labeled obstructionists. Holding up legislation to make a point is similar to Verizon workers going on strike; we have got to capture the attention of the average American before it's too late to redefine what we want our government to be.

Neither party would even be having this productive conversation -- failed for now -- about right-sizing government for what we are taking in, if the tea-party-influenced membership had not pressured Republicans.

And don't hold out hope for an "anybody but Obama" solution to your problems. Mitt Romney is holding tea party convictions at arm's length, and appears to be the next John McCain. Michele Bachmann pretends to tea conviction and wears the label conveniently.

If Obama is not "one and done," then just what would he do differently in a second term that he hasn't had as a priority already? A reckoning of promises made versus kept should be a simple ledger; the bragged-about priority had been to fix the economy and create jobs.

Congrats to all those fortunate highway construction workers!

Steven R. Berryman

writes from Frederick.

(srbmgr@comcast.net)

Original FNP Link is: Government downgraded

srbmgr@comcast.net

When Competition Distracts Patriots

2011-08-11T08:38:00.002-04:00

When Competition Distracts Patriots

Steven R. Berryman

[from The Tentacle 8/8/2011]

When the politics of political divisiveness reach crescendo, as they are now during what was billed as America’s “Recovery Summer,” the nature of the two party system is revealed. It serves to sustain itself over the best interests of the American people.

Popular myth, reinforced in the liberal education system, is that Republicans and Democrats do battle against each other in competition for the best ideas and policy to maintain our constitutional Republic. A better analogy would be the Soviets seemingly waging the Cold War against our Unites States, but with the end-game really to make excuse for defense spending!

Where would Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and Raytheon be without great bogeymen?

We live in a physical paradigm where DemoCans and RepubliCrats exist only in the “political continuum” as anti-particles against each other. The only two viable parties live on only because of the fact that they have a matching foil – each other.

The cash result to average American citizens is that neither party does its job of keeping the nation’s house in order. They simply take turns governing, each overspending on their own pet causes.

They joust over social differences but have taken turns overspending without remorse on fiscal issues.

One will overspend on the Great Society social programs, and then the other will concoct a conflict. One party will complain against an ongoing “war” in order to gain office, and then propagate it just as readily as the other would have.

In net fiscal outcome for our nation, it has never been about proper budgeting or planning. Never about reading the right tea leaves or finding that perfect economic theory or economist.

This “collusion with illusion” between our two parties has resulted in a true polarization in America, much to its distress. Winner-take-all politics has recently spoiled what could have been real compromise.

The best example of this has been the final solution to advancing the debt ceiling, aka “kicking the can down the road.” Both parties successfully avoided bringing to the table a solution that would have included reducing government to a manageable, right-sized level.

Specific – worst offending – departments were not selected for line-item evaluation. One could argue that we have entire agencies that could be consolidated – or eliminated – due to duplication, redundancy, or irrelevancy!

A simple solution could have been to go to each and every distinct cabinet secretary and ask for a seven percent giveback to the Treasury. I’m not talking about promises to un-spend money that they projected going forward but to reduce from the current budget.

And not willy-nilly but in a thoughtful and conscientious way, after taking learned partners.

I do not mean via “super-Congress,” or a “super-committee,” or a super anything! An added extra-constitutional layer would distract from Congress’s own sworn responsibility, and simply provide cover to railroad bad plans without proper vetting and due process…while insulating the jobs of said Congress.

Don’t forget that the debt ceiling bill was passed without looking at the final product and subjecting it to scrutiny, analysis or debate. Per this post by the group “Campaign for Liberty,” even the GOPs bragged-upon “Three Day Rule” was violated fully. See this link: http://tinyurl.com/WhoSoldYouDownTheRiver.

Does this remind you of Nancy Pelosi’s “We had to pass the bill in order to see what’s in it.”?

And so the distraction of our nation, propagated by public anger from the polarization, rules the news. Rudeness rules in the media as MSNBC and FOX take turns telling half-stories and “lies by omission.” NPRcontinues to push the Obama Administration’s agenda with your tax dollars.

Folks, please get your information from many, many sources to even out the content!

Yes, the media-bias has gotten so bad that it’s almost time to reinstall an upgraded “fairness doctrine,” but one that works!

But what of the third party, you know, that “Tea Party?” you might ask. I have described them in myFrederick News-Post column [A Political Fix ] and I have a unique take on the matter…

…That there is no real Tea Party as such. They exist only in fable and in song. They remain diffuse and amorphous, a true grass roots, popular movement in the most positive sense – but leaderless.

The media only gives Tea “street-cred” in faux admiration for their new clout; but beware: this is only in order to make it simpler to demonize a large group of disassociated concerned American patriots.

Good luck to that! Not.

srbmgr@gmail.com

Advertisers here do not necessarily agree or disagree with the opinions expressed by the individual columnist appearing on The Tentacle.

When Competition Distracts Patriots is the original link.

srbmgr@gmail.com

A Political Fix

2011-08-07T07:03:00.004-04:00

A political fix

Originally published August 05, 2011
The Frederick News-Post

By Steven R. Berryman

On Tuesday the president signed a law 75 pages long, claiming a victory for the American people. While the White House does the "happy dance," you will hear that the compromise was fair because nobody was happy with the bill.

The rush of the complex legislation -- still not digested or vetted -- reminds me of how urgent passage of Obamacare was. The time squandered pushing that bill through distracted fully from job-creation work, and did not save the average family $2,000 a year in medical costs as promised.

We continue to be "served" by our government: about medium-rare!

The Obama victory lap is a false one, starting with the arbitrary deadline itself. But his fake praise for the people hurts more than the end result of the bill, which is to "kick the can farther down the road."

From his lectern our president formally thanked the people for getting involved by contacting their senators and representatives, making calls and sending emails.

And then he had his right-hand man Joe Biden call the "tea party" terrorists.

Folks, there is no tea party. There is no party named tea. It is simply a nebulous and loosely affiliated group of independent voters who won't take it any more from a failing governmental system and two parties that both claim to represent the best interests of average American people.

So Biden just called the swing voters in our great nation terrorists, ostensibly because they were pushing the Republicans in a direction that worked against the administration's position.

Friends, this healthy conversation about not raising the debt ceiling yet again would not even be taking place without the pressure from the leaderless tea-faction! Tea comprises the independent thinkers who consider future generations and have an honest understanding of our core problems.

Our spending addiction is now treated with the same efficacy as giving a Tylenol to a pneumonia patient. However, the real cures -- which include real work such as right-sizing the federal government to what we can afford and analyzing what we are really getting for our money spent -- never happen.

We know we are not getting oversight!

We know that the tax code works for nobody but H&R Block. We maintain a "make-work" military-industrial-intelligence complex with the globe's top offensive capability that we still swear we don't intend to use.

Social welfare and the war on drugs all became spending traps protecting political muscle; again, Congress failing.

In this bill, fake cuts of future money that we might have spent will not replace a tax increase, despite claims otherwise. Under this plan, the mortgage interest deduction, which protects the middle class, could be eliminated. It wouldn't be a tax, but would have the same impact fiscally -- it would affect our nest eggs, the real American Dream.

Politicians fixed the problems all right; they fixed how to slither through the next election cycle at the expense of the people they swore to serve.

How's that full faith and credit thing working out?

Steven R. Berryman writes from Frederick.

(srbmgr@comcast.net)