Letter to Editor: More FASTC Issues
First the Queen Anne County Commissioners vote unanimously ‘for’ the FASTC Project. After being run over by a group of activists, they pulled back their support “pending more complete information”. A public information and forum process began, courtesy of higher level prodding from leaders like Senator Mikulski and Congressman Kratovil. The County Commissioners dropped out of sight. But in recent local front-page news accounts, these commissioners tell us they have no role to play (Ransom) and don’t know what else they can do (Wargotz)? Immediately after these clear statements, they approve motion after motion sending letters to most everyone at every level asking them to weigh in? They send one to the GSA & State Department requesting a full Environmental Impact Statement? Why wouldn’t we wait on the findings of the preliminary NEPA process now underway? Seems once that’s completed, we’ll know whether the additional time & cost of an EIS is warranted? Certainly this makes sense, especially for the pig balloon toting ‘Anti-Pork’ folks? I’m not clear what role our commissioners want, but certainly their action or lack of action is being observed.
Then Letters to the Editor started arriving. One stated FASTC supporters “forced the Playa’s NM video off air because it showed the truth?” Conveniently missing was this taxpayer funded local government channel should only air balanced, non-political information, something not found in the Playa’s video. Every (GSA & State department) official asked noted the most comparable existing facility was the Federal Law Enforcement Training center in Georgia, not New Mexico? Could it be the Georgia facility enjoys support from local residents and the business community (it does)? Another letter said, “Congressman Kratovil won’t meet with us?” Conveniently omitted are the earlier few times the opposition aggressively and un-announced stormed his office, disrupting the workday? They couldn’t set an appointment? I suppose I’d hesitate to take a call or meeting too, they’ve made their own bed.
The same group overtook each of the public forums at Queen Anne’s high school creating an uncomfortable environment that kept some citizens from attending. The opposition either forgets, or ignores, that many here still seek information and have a right to their opinion? In fact, a majority of our residents, beginning in Centreville and moving co-centrically outward into the county and region are in FAVOR of the FASTC project and this same study shows when more information is provided, favorability increases. This was reported recently in a poll conducted by Hart Research Associates, Inc. (http://www.hartresearch.com/about/), a nationally known polling organization. Come to think of it, perhaps the opposition has read this study?
Congressman Kratovil, Senator Mikulski and Senator Cardin work for all residents, not simply a handful. I’m happy to see the tide has turned as I see, hear and read more and more from average citizens across our region finally weighing in, many in support of FASTC. Like every challenging contentious issue over time, the opposition always comes out fast, hard and first. The rest of us, busy with life, families and work assume our leaders have the pulse of everyone they are supposed to represent. My hope is more people will join this important conversation and become engaged, contact leaders from local to State to Federal levels. Ask questions, provide observations, and offer ideas and solutions and not simply emotional rhetoric from either side or opinion.
High emotions with clever ‘save farms’ signs look neat in newspapers & on television, but they aren’t so nice for our daily scenery, or the environment. Here’s a question: aren’t the diehard environmentalists the same ones who’ve battled farming for damages they cause the Bay? How’d this one single “For Sale” farm move over to the ‘Save’ category anyway?
Steve Donovan
Centreville, MD
Volunteer, Queen Anne’s County Economic Development Commission
Member Queen Anne’s County Chamber of Commerce
Letter to Editor: Is The Army Now Nimby?
The Hard Skills Training Facility that is currently proposed for the quiet community of Ruthsburg in eastern Queen Anne’s County has certainly created a deep divide among the residents of this largely rural county. The local residents have drawn a line in the sand and are mounting quite a challenge to the GSA and Department of State. The GSA admits that they were taken by surprise at the level of resistance that the citizens of Ruthsburg have been able to mount against them.
One of the common arguments that the proponents of this facility are using is the term NIMBY. This is short for “not in my back yard”. Some of the residents are willing to wear this label proudly. There isn’t much doubt at all that the community of Ruthsburg doesn’t want this facility in their back yard and for a number of reasons. One of their strongest arguments is for this Hard Skills Facility to be placed on a military base like Quantico, Aberdeen or Ft. AP Hill. All of these locations have thousands of acres of available space that could easily accommodate the 1200 acres required for this facility and all are located within the 150 mile radius that the State Department listed as a key criteria in selecting a ‘preferred location’. Using existing federal land would certainly save the taxpayers millions of dollars at a time when the government is experiencing record deficits.
The question of using existing federal or military land was brought to the forefront in the forums held at the Queen Anne’s County high school in January. During the second round of forums in mid-February, The GSA and State Dept addressed that very question. In Chuck Radersdorf’s opening remarks at the meeting held on Feb 16th, it became apparent that the Department of the Army was now willing to wear the same ‘NIMBY’ badge as the Ruthsburg residents. Taken from the transcripts in his words:
Second question we’ve heard a lot is why not put this on a military base like Aberdeen or Quantico or Fort –hill. Federal regulations require us to check with all federal agencies and look for existing federal property before buying new federal property. And we definitely did that. The military has a lot going on and they were too biz and they would not give us any land. So they were unable to accommodate our requirement. And we’re not part of the military.
Is this the way two government agencies responsible for mounting the war on terrorism are supposed to be acting? Shouldn’t they be working together to achieve the same goal? Or is it that the military doesn’t feel that this project is worth while enough to work with GSA and the DoS?
If the Department of the Army doesn’t want this Hard Skills Facility in its back yard, how can the GSA and State Department expect the citizens of Ruthsburg to feel any different?
Dave Dunmyer
Queen Anne’s County
Letter to Editor: Let’s Keep it God’s Country
To the Editor:
The topic of the Foreign Affairs Security Training Center (FASTC) has dominated our lives and our household for three months now and rightfully so. I can’t remember the last time I or my husband got a good night’s sleep. Our daughter moved out on her own recently and we hardly see her. Our son is a senior in high school this year and while dinner conversation should revolve around caps & gowns, graduation parties and college plans, it speaks more of bomb explosions and gun fire. Through all this turmoil; however, I have found two wonderful outcomes. (I am always the one to find the silver lining.).
The first is the wonderful friends we have made recently. They have been blessings from God and I can guarantee that these relationships will remain steadfast. It is rare that you find someone who is willing to drop everything to come to your aid and is willing to stand toe to toe with you through the most vicious of storms (and this facility ranks high on the Fujita and Richter scales), let alone a group of hundreds. These individuals, too numerous to name, don’t put money above the welfare of those in their community. They are the TRUE meaning of community.
The second is that I see the area, really see the area, I have taken for granted. My husband LOVES the outdoors- hiking, fishing, camping, hunting, kayaking, you name it. Me, my idea of roughing it is a two-star hotel. Opposites; but today and this weekend I saw it for the first time….the exquisite beauty of this area.
There had to be at least 200 people visiting and utilizing Tuckahoe State Park this weekend. All walks of life fishing, catching perch, bass and all manners of aquatic life. Then there were the young families playing at the playground and enjoying their first picnic of the year. Walking and biking trails were filled with young and old alike. EVERY ONE of these individuals was so upset at the thought of the HARD SKILLS facility. I remember thinking to myself, Wow! What a tragedy it would be for this to change.
Today we went for a drive around the perimeter of the site and my breath was actually taken away as I was able to shoot several pictures of a majestic bald eagle “having breakfast” within three feet of our position. He looked up at us but allowed us to stay. As we watched in wonder, I noticed the total peace of the area and realized what I had taken for granted. I tried to picture the same scene with bombs exploding and the sound of screeching tires – the smell of exhaust…I felt a lump in my throat.
We left the bald eagle to enjoy and continued down the road maybe less than a minute away and saw a farm with an open field where there were what looked like swans enjoying the beauty of the day. Swans in the middle of a field?! The rain and the melted snow had caused the field to “flood” but the geese and a few swans did not seem to care. Again I got out the camera to capture the moment.
How can anyone even consider putting a HARD SKILLS facility among all this beauty that God has created? We are so blessed here on the Eastern Shore to have all of this right here. Let’s face it, it would NEVER be the same. The thought of not having this anymore for my future grandchildren to experience and enjoy is heart-breaking.
Though I may not have seen it before, my eyes are open now. God has given us these precious gifts and we will protect them with all that we have. We will continue to fight for the wildlife that call this their home; for the elderly who aren’t on time schedules and can stroll peacefully and at their leisure; for the fishermen, hikers and bikers who find and/or make time for a little rest and relaxation; and for the children who are our future and are entitled to all that God has to give. I’ve said it before and I will say it again, this is God’s country and we need to keep it that way.
Sherry Adam
Ruthsburg, MD
Letter to Editor: Last Chance for Health Insurance Reform
Music to my ears! “Seeing no prospect of a bipartisan agreement on health care, congressional Democrats say they will make another effort to pass sweeping health care legislation on their own.” (N.Y. Times Feb. 27)
Obama, Pelosi, and Reid realize that (1) the U.S. electorate—by a wide margin—delivered the White House and substantial majorities in both houses to Democratic candidates who said they’d reform health insurance; and (2) it’s time to deliver.
Even Steny Hoyer has found his missing backbone: “The No. 2 Republican in the House, Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, asked the House Democratic leader, Rep. Steny H. Hoyer of Maryland, to renounce use of the budget reconciliation procedure for health care. But in an exchange on the House floor on [Feb. 26], Mr. Hoyer refused to do so. Use of the procedure is ‘in the Republican tradition,’ Mr. Hoyer said. In any event, he said, Senate rules requiring a 60-vote majority to cut off a filibuster ‘are impeding the work of the American people.’” (Ibid)
Either South Carolina’s Sen. Jim DeMint was right, that health insurance reform “will be Obama’s Waterloo,” or he wasn’t.
Can we assume that Rep. Frank Kratovil—blue dog morphing into lame duck—will do something right to remember him by and vote for health insurance reform now?
Gren Whitman
Letter to Editor: Taxes will go up with FASTC
Several weeks ago, Clayton A Mitchell, an attorney from Stevensville, placed an op-ed in the Spy supporting the proposed FASTC Hard Skills Training Center. Two thirds of the letter was spent in explaining how this proposed facility was vital to national defense, and “Queen Anne’s County must ‘step up to the plate’…. with overwhelming support.” Never in any discussion have I heard any person opposed to the facility in QAC say that personnel should not be adequately trained. They simply say that Ruthsburg is a poor choice of location for a military training facility, and also extremely expensive, particularly when the government already owns so much land that could be used for the facility. The last third of the letter describes how life on the Eastern Shore will decay without the facility and “lead to certain…higher tax rates.”
Mr. Mitchell’s economic projections are not supported by any data. In fact, the FASTC team trying to sell the program says that no economic studies have been made, that they are underway, and it will be several weeks before they are complete, and they are unable to say what economic benefit, if any, will come to the County if the Hard Skills facility is installed until these studies are complete.
The proposed hard skills facility hits the county with a triple-whammy for a tax increase. Not only are we taking away 2000 acres of tax positive farmland, we are substituting for it a business which pays zero taxes, and takes even more land for tax negative residential use for employees of that business which pays no taxes. I don’t believe anyone could study the numbers involved without predicting a tax increase for the County. The American Farmland Trust has run over 100 studies of counties and areas like ours, and every single one of them has shown that residential land use cost the county more than it collected in taxes on that land and its improvements. Only by taxing other sectors of the community (industrial, commercial, farmland and open space and forests) more than the cost of services provided to them, is the county able to maintain a balanced budget.
Let’s look at the study made for our neighbor, Kent County Maryland
This proposed training center brings us traffic, noise, pollution, and damage to our agricultural base. This study indicated that it would also bring tax increases to us.
The two studies that support these figures can be found at the following websites:
http://www.farmland.org/programs/states/documents
www.farmlandinfo.org/documents
Bob Simmons
Reed Creek Farm
Centreville, MD
To the Editor: A Chestertown Fire by Trams Hollingsworth
It hadn’t been my best week. I was spinning my wheels. Literally and figuratively. My long country lane was almost impassible with deep ruts of slush and mud. The first days of the week I’d spent caring for my elderly mother. She had gotten, and then generously shared with other family and friends, a virulent norovirus. This bug had landed one of my mom’s caretakers in the hospital. It landed me, purged and exhausted, on the bathroom floor. But I woke up Friday morning feeling better and with an odd, for this week, attitude of optimism. This, I thought, will be a better day. And that’s when a neighbor called to tell me that my house on Kent Street was on fire.
I was numb with fear as I slid down my lane and sped toward town. I love the purple house in inverse proportion to it’s size. It might be the smallest house in Chestertown. It began as a log-and-chink cabin, a slave house or an outside kitchen (we’ve heard both) that was long ago transported from a country estate to Kent St. I was imagining, as I drove, all the happy history of my little purple house up in smoke. But mostly I was scared for our tenants who are also our friends. I’d been told they were not home. But I knew that much of their family history was stored inside this happy house. My friend had proudly pointed out the furniture she’d recently inherited from her mother. But her most valuable possessions, like mine, were the boxes of photographs and letters that we all plan to sort through one day. I imagined these boxes in flames and I was consumed by sadness on my short drive to town.
In the few minutes it took me to reach the site, the Chestertown Volunteer Fire Company had already blocked the street. At some point when I was able to focus I counted six fire trucks in front of my house. But I wasn’t focusing at first. All I registered were firemen, a few at a time, entering and exiting my house through a tunnel of black smoke. A score of other firemen standing ready in the street. I knew the tenants were not inside but…
“There’s a cat inside!” I started screaming as I ran into their midst.
Everyone stopped what they were doing in attention. Then those brave firemen designated to respond to this emergency went back through the axe-broken front door. In less time that it took to be terrified, a cat who had always been the color of smoke came scooting out of the house and into the yard. And everybody, the throng of careful neighbors, the local insurance agent already on the scene, and a brigade of canvas-bundled firemen started clapping and cheering. Grey Kitty, the neighborhood’s once-feral now community-spoiled cat was safe.
Photo by Anne Briggs
Next I stood in my neighbors’ side yard and watched our fire company at work. Soon there was a big hole in the side of my house. I could see firemen with crowbars prying boards from inside and throwing these flaming javelins through the hole into the snowy yard where they were extinguished. The smoke, once floor to ceiling, was clearing. But flaming missiles kept flying through the hole into a high pile of char. It would be much later when I realized that the many water hoses held ready in the street were never turned on inside the house. It would be only hypothetical by the time I wondered how much water it would have taken to dissolve a two-hundred year old log and chink historic cabin.
Photo by Anne Briggs
Then, as I looked through the hole into my house, I was surprised to see my tenant. He had been working in Galena when he got the call that his house was on fire. I recalled the terror of my two-minute drive and wondered how he’d managed his twenty minutes of not knowing. But there he was waving me inside to where he stood with the firemen. He was dazed I’m sure. I’m also sure he had this weird grin.
“It’s funny what you think about,” he told me later. “I wouldn’t allow myself to hope that the old wooden house would be standing.”
Where his irrational brain had taken him on his terrible drive to town were the recent days he’d spent here trying to get his income taxes in order. The hours he’d spent finding and organizing all the papers he needed to compile this report. And how he’d piled them on the dining room table. Somehow his sense of emotional self-preservation had not allowed him to think of the boxes of family photos but had focused him on these piles of tax papers. “Look,” he said pointing to the dining room table now framed by the charred studs of what had been the wall of our house. And there, a little sooty but there, were his neat piles of tax papers. We both looked incredulously at the firemen still milling about who had made this crazy relief a reality.
This is how a big black hole in your little purple house can make you feel very, very lucky. Lucky that you live in Chestertown. Where a neighbor smells smoke and goes looking for its source. Where another neighbor pushing a stroller calls 911. Where firemen arrive almost instantly. Where they go bravely into your smoking, burning house and make the careful assessment that they will try to save it from the easier but devastating dousing. Where more neighbors and friends have gathered to offer support for the owners and temporary residence for the tenants. And best of all for the community of all who cheered so loudly when the once-feral, now-cuddled cat comes scooting into the crowd.
There is a lot to be thankful for when you live in this careful town. Firemen and friends are at the top of my list as I finish this story. Thank you.
Sincerely.
Trams Hollingsworth
Owner of the Little Purple House
Still standing on Kent Street
To the Editor: Cedar Run Farm Still Causing Problems for Chester River
To The Editor:
In 2008, the Chester River Association received a complaint from a concerned citizen about cattle being pastured near a Queen Anne’s County stream. CRA investigated and found high levels of ammonia and phosphorus entering the stream through a shallow drainage swale. Those nutrients — components of animal waste — ultimately drain into the Chester River, where they affect water quality.
CRA presented our findings to the property’s owner, Lew Dodd, of Cedar Run Cattle Company. Mr. Dodd is well known locally as a seller of beef and as a merchant at Chestertown’s Farmers’ Market.
Mr. Dodd questioned the validity of CRA’s findings. So we investigated further.
That investigation showed that the high levels of ammonia and phosphorus were indeed coming from Cedar Run. We then turned to the Maryland Department of Agriculture and the Queen Anne’s County Soil Conservation District. Through SCD’s efforts, Cedar Run and Mr. Dodd were accepted as recipients for funding to fence the cattle away from the drainage swale, so as to keep nutrients from cattle waste away from the river.
Yet, almost a year later, no fence has been erected. The cattle continue feeding and generating waste where they had earlier.
CRA is baffled, disappointed and unhappy. Our mission is to protect the Chester River’s health, and we take it seriously.
At this point, the situation at Cedar Run has been turned over to the Maryland Department of the Environment for possible action.
CRA did not wish this result. CRA’s preference, when pollution problems are identified, has always been to try to be helpful in seeking solutions. But that result doesn’t always occur.
We still hope that Cedar Run will correct its problems, on its own. But if not, we hope MDE will tell Cedar Run that it MUST correct the problems – quickly.
Sincerely,
Tom Leigh
Chester Riverkeeper
Spy Op-Ed: Let’s Support Training Center by Clayton A. Mitchell
President Andrew Jackson once said, “Eternal vigilance by the people is the price of liberty, and that you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing.” If today’s date was September 11, 2001, and the federal government asked the citizens of Queen Anne’s County for its assistance in fighting the War on Terror, no one among us would have refused the government’s request. We would have stood in line to volunteer to do anything and everything we could, just as we stood in line to donate blood and enlist in the armed forces in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks.
Today, the war continues to rage on many fronts. From Iraq and Afghanistan to India and Yemen, as well as a hundred other flashpoints around the globe, our soldiers and intelligence officers are on patrol and ever vigilant. For those Queen Anne’s countians who may have forgotten the horror we all experienced on that infamous September day, our country was recently sent a grim reminder by a suicidal fanatic (who was hell-bent on giving our nation a death-laden present by airmail over the skies of Detroit on Christmas Day) that terrorists are ever present. The enemy that sought our destruction over eight years ago is focused and determined to kill as many of Americans as it can and to disrupt our liberties and way of life.
The United States State Department recently announced its plans to place a Foreign Affairs Security Training Center on the Hunt-Ray Farm in Queen Anne’s County. The State Department’s existing security training infrastructure is not sufficient to meet its current and projected training needs. The training is currently conducted at 15 locations throughout the United States. Consolidating security training operations in Queen Anne’s County (and in close proximity to Washington, D.C.) will make training more efficient, save taxpayers’ dollars, and create much-needed jobs for our deteriorating local economy.
At the recent public informational meetings in Centreville, it was disheartening to hear friends and neighbors criticize the State Department officials. Many acted as if the proposed project was for a Wal-Mart or another 1000 home cookie-cutter development. However, this proposed federal training center has a higher purpose and a noble mission. In these times of war (and we are at war), Queen Anne’s County must “step up to the plate” and support the training facility with overwhelming support – the same way we would have on September 11, 2001. If communities across the nation had the same mind-set the opponents of this project have, our nation’s defenders would be deprived of the finest and most efficient locations at which to train for their missions.
I do not suggest that the neighboring property owners do not have legitimate concerns. These citizens’ concerns have been artfully expressed in articulate statements and emotional pleas to various public officials. The federal government, however, appears ready, willing and able to fully address the concerns of those most affected, work with the neighbors and make them as comfortable as possible with the design, mission and activities of the proposed facility. The well-founded and heartfelt concerns of a few, however, must not operate to dissolve this opportunity for our county as a whole.
In addition to promoting and advancing our country’s security needs, the training facility will give a much needed boost to our local economy. Many temporary and permanent jobs will be created. An ensuing “ripple effect” of economic activity would stimulate local businesses, accelerate job opportunities for our friends without work, and promote and preserve the prosperous way of life we have come to enjoy on the Eastern Shore. The newly-created jobs and the economic activity spurred by new employment would go elsewhere if the facility was not built in Queen Anne’s County.
Citizens of Queen Anne’s County: the County Commissioners have no “Plan B” for meaningful economic development for our local economy. Without these new jobs, the local economy will continue to slowly “circle the drain”; local businesses will have fewer customers with fewer dollars to purchase goods and services; the local housing market will continue its decline; more small locally-owned businesses will close their doors; property assessments will continue to fall with resulting tax revenues declining. This will lead to certain higher unemployment, deflated housing values, and higher property tax rates. We will have to sponsor a lot of chicken dinners and bake sales to raise money for our emergency response services when budget cuts become necessarily routine.
Let’s help each other prosper during this tough economic time while doing something in furtherance of our national security. Join me in supporting the Foreign Affairs Security Training Center on the Hunt-Ray Farm.
To the Editor: Need for some Up Town Correction
Unlike most of the Town Council I remember when Downtown Chestertown was quite a bustling little town. We had two furniture stores, several clothing stores, affordable restaurants, a store that sold fabric and most any sewing item a person might need as well as other popular stores, wonder what happened? All we hear now is shop downtown, well, why not have some stores that sell “everyday” kinda needs and wants. Other then the drug stores and an occasional visit to the book store there is nothing down there that I want or could afford. Somebody better start paying some attention to Up Town or we won’t have anywhere but DE to shop. Never heard a word mentioned when Hallmark closed. I understand there is another store getting ready to close and one on a seesaw. Has anyone noticed how many empty store fronts there are at both shopping centers? Does anyone care? Oh, that’s right, we must get the Rails to Trails up and running, duh, for WHO???? What happened to the park that was to be made up off Rt291 that the town bought property for all those years ago, oops, we don’t have any money for that. There are a whole lot of us folks from Flatland Road to out on Rt. 213 that are suppose to be a part of Chestertown that would like to think we count for something. Guess one day when Chestertown becomes Chestertownburg all those folks running the show will be very happy with themselves, hope they are satisfied!
Billie Beck
Chestertown, MD
To the Editor: MPT Missed It
Dear Editor,
I attended the premier of the MPT documentary of Chestertown on Friday. I was disappointed. I believe they did a great job of presenting those parts of Chestertown in the first and second wards but almost no mention of the rest of the town. What they presented is great to attract tourists, and if that was what it was about, they accomplished that. I thought it was to give a true picture of our town and they missed the boat in doing that. What I love about Chestertown is that it is a complete town. Ours is a town where not only people play as depicted, but they also work and shop.
What about Dixon Valve and Gillespie and those other manufacturers that employ the residents of the town? Our fine hospital, one of our biggest employers, certainly helps make our town special. It would have been nice to show our schools, both public and private. Why just concentrate on those businesses that sell items and services that tourists purchase? How about those businesses in the shopping center?They, too, provide services to our town? We would be very hard pressed to feed and clothe the residents without the businesses that are in our shopping area outside the downtown district.
Much of the show was made up of clips made by the local downtown residents. Some were really done well and enjoyable, but much of it was redundant. They resembled home movies and I guess that is OK because that is what they were. The producer had a crew in town and it would have been good if he had put them to use. A little more history of the town would have been nice. I am part of the town government and I believe that we sometimes forget the other areas of town when we become over-anxious about the survival of the downtown. It is all of Chestertown that makes Chestertown the great place to live. I think maybe we in the town government need to convey to the people at MPT that it takes a whole community to make a town.
Marty Stetson
Ward 4 Council Member
Letter to Editor: Kent County Secession?
Editor:
Chestertown Spy correspondents Keith Thompson and “Jimbo” suggest that seceding from Maryland might solve such local problems as shutting Upper Shore. What a great idea … but … Delaware—plus Accomack and Northampton counties in Virginia—need to join us to establish the Delmarva Territory. Be serious! Dynamite the Bay Bridge. Dynamite the bridge-tunnel to Norfolk. Set up the “Delmarva Relocation Authority” to assist former bridge commuters and “Delmarva Transportation Authority” to operate bay-crossing ferries. Base new territorial economy on chicken manure, I-95 tolls, unlimited slots, and housing subdivisions, shopping malls, and general sprawl. Adopt territorial flag with Confederate stars-and-bars and Lipton teabag superimposed; territorial flower—poison ivy; sport—bear-baiting; rodent—fox squirrel; slogan—“Gimme”; bird—cuckoo. Apply for admission to U.S.
Grenville B. Whitman
Letter to the Editor: Kratovil Challenge
Editor:
Rep. Frank Kratovil needs to face the fact that he squeaked into his congressional seat largely because the turnout for Barack Obama was so large and so enthusiastic.
Mr. Obama said he’d close Guantanamo, repeal “don’t ask, don’t tell” and the Defense of Marriage Act, run an open government, scratch secret meetings, reform health care, bring our troops home from Iraq, and provide a stimulus to energize the economy and create much needed jobs, which is why I—with the majority—turned out to vote for him.
Mr. Obama is not on the ballot in 2010, but Mr. Kratovil is.
Between now and then, no matter how Mr Kratovil votes on health care—or anything else—or what he writes, or what he says, or what he doesn’t say, or everything, or nothing, or whether he’s a “Blue Dog” Democrat, or not, he will be subjected to a scurrilous-bordering-on-hate-bordering-on-toxic campaign in 2010 by his likely, thoroughly right-wing opponent and the fat-cat Club for Growth.
In summoning his courage to vote “YES” on health care reform, Mr. Kratovil needs to realize that in spite of winning in a conservative area that has sent Republicans-only to Congress since Ulysses S. Grant was president, and despite the prospect of a second contest with the same far-right extremist, that NY District 23 winner—Democrat Bill Owens—has already told Speaker Nancy Pelosi that he backs the Dems’ health care proposal.
GRENVILLE B. WHITMAN
Rock Hall, MD
Letter to the Editor: Doctor Shortage?
Editor:
The Democratic Party has left / liberal / moderate / conservative splits. Witness our Eastern Shore “Blue Dog” representative who—fearing more savaging in 2010 by antediluvian Andy Harris and the sleazy Club for Growth—hasn’t yet backed his party’s strenuous efforts to enact strong health-insurance reform.
Rep. Kratovil’s Web site tries to excuse his failure to back the robust “Medicare-plus-5” version: “While the broad debate about reform has national implications, I am also particularly concerned about the provider shortage here in our part of Maryland. Low Medicare reimbursement rates and a concentrated private insurance market have led to a shortage of doctors, which is particularly acute on the Eastern Shore. As the health reform discussion continues, I will continue to be a leading voice in the fight to address rural provider shortages and expand incentives for doctors who serve in rural areas.”
Weak. Does Mr. Kratovil think he represents North Dakota? Wyoming? “Shortage of doctors on the Eastern Shore?” I get doctored in C’town and dentisted in Easton, but that’s part of life in the great outdoors. Am I missing something? Is there a “shortage of doctors” in Kent County? On the Eastern Shore?
We Dems encompass conservatives, moderates, liberals, and bomb-throwers, but unlike the GOP, we’re not purging everyone but radical leftists, and there’s time for Kratovil to come around..
Grenville B. Whitman
Rock Hall
Spy Op-Ed: Key Questions to Save Mental Health Center by Heather Mizeur
It goes without saying that the State is facing tough economic times, but closing the Upper Shore Mental Health Center is penny-wise and pound-foolish.
The Board of Public Works’ decision to close the Upper Shore Mental Health Center is estimated to save $2.7 million this year and $7 million annually thereafter by eliminating 90 staff positions. But these numbers fail to consider the full fiscal impact on our state’s health system.
A final determination on the future of USMHC should not be considered until we organize as a community and get answers to the following questions:
➢ What is the TOTAL state cost of closing this facility?
The Secretary of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene should report on the TOTAL state cost of closing USMHC – which would include a calculation of increased Medicaid expenditures from transport costs to other facilities; the uncompensated care costs that will increase for other local hospitals; the cost to the overall health system for these patients to be bounced among multiple other providers that are not trained to understand the special needs of those with severe and persistent chronic mental illness and addiction.
A more complete financial picture should provide the only justification needed for keeping the facility open – never mind the additional important social, economic, regional, and health access concerns that are reasons enough as well.
➢ With major health reform legislation in the works, can our Federal delegation find a way to save USMHC?
Our Congressional representatives in the House and Senate might be able to negotiate a provision in the pending national health reform bill that would give facilities like Upper Shore – a specialty unit within a state hospital system for co-occurring mental illness and addiction – a reprieve through temporary federal funding that would bring down the state’s cost of continuing to operate the center.
A federal demonstration project could be established to determine how an inpatient mental health facility like the Upper Shore saves the system money when uninsured patients with complex mental health needs have an option for extended hospitalization that will treat – and cure – their conditions. The proposal would be measured by the value it creates for health outcomes as well as savings for the health system writ large.
➢ What new revenue can the General Assembly find to improve our overall fiscal forecast?
It’s a given that local opposition is organized against the closure of USMHC, a popular health care facility and an economic anchor in the community. Now we have the far more difficult challenge of identifying the revenue sources necessary to prevent cuts like these from happening in the first place.
I welcome my colleagues from the upper Shore (District 36) – all of whom voted against the 2007 special session budget designed to raise the revenue necessary to keep essential services available across the state – to now suggest the ways in which we close the budget gap without closing USMHC. These are difficult choices, to be sure, but politicians should not be allowed to take credit for sounding the alarm bells when they helped set the fire.
If all else fails, our communities should demand that the amazing men and women who make Upper Shore the crown jewel of mental health services on the Eastern Shore be treated with respect and dignity in this transition. Severance pay, extension of health benefits, and priority placements in other state positions should be an automatic consideration.
Heather R. Mizeur is a Member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing District 20. She is a nationally recognized health policy expert who serves on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Resources which oversees the State’s health facilities budget.Letter to the Editor: Upper Shore Mental Health Center
Editor:
At the county Democratic Club’s meeting on October 17, Commissioner Ron Fithian offered a provocative insight with regard to the potential shuttering of the Upper Shore Community Mental Health Center, and Commissioner William Pickrum echoed his remarks.
Mr Fithian noted that our county’s four 36th Legislative District representatives—Sen. E.J. Pipkin and Dels. Mary Roe Walkup, Richard Sossi, and Michael Smigiel, Republicans all—are blowing smoke and waving mirrors and should be called out. Reportedly, they voted against the early versions of the state budget that contained funding for the center, and now they’re crying crocodile tears.With “representatives” like this, who needs enemies?
For Kent Countians, being represented by the “Party of No” weaken our ability to influence our fiscal future. First, as Maryland’s smallest county, our votes, at best, have meager clout—Strike One! Second, in predominantly Democratic Maryland, Kent County elects four Republicans who mostly vote against (1) our governor and (2) his legislative and administrative colleagues—Strike Two!
As Bob Kramer points out in his “War for the Shore,” Pipkin, Walkup, Sossi and Smigiel are like accordion players at a football game—a lotta noise, but little effect on the score. So, the next time you see Mr. Pipkin out flapping a sign from his pickup, ask … why’s he doing that? And then ask, why don’t we elect Democrats?
GRENVILLE B. WHITMAN
5745 Liberty Street
Rock Hall MD 21661
In Response to “Woodsman, Spare That Policy”
Dear Editor,
I have come under some sharp criticism for my vote on the tree ordinance and I can understand why those who have expressed their feelings are upset. Maybe I didn’t do a good job of explaining my vote. If you remember, I was the council member who sounded the alarm about individual rights on the first reading. I keep an open mind and listen very carefully when we are debating any subject that comes before the council. I have very strong personal feelings about independent rights and pointed that out as well as other problems I had with the tree ordinance.
But in doing my job as a council person I try not to let my personal feelings interfere with the issue being debated. I did get the tree ordinance changed in a way I felt would benefit the individual home owner but still leave in effect a law that benefits everyone, not only property owners but those who live in our community
The tree committee did an excellent job in pointing out the advantages of having a tree canopy and what the consequences are to the environment when you cut down a large tree. It is very common for people get upset over clear cutting in our western states or the slash and burn that is now occurring in South America.They forget that to cut large trees here in our community have a similar effect only it is much closer to home.
Finally, I wish all of those who feel the ordinance adversely effects them to take the time to go to the town office or on line and read the law we passed. There is plenty of protection for you in it as a private home owner but also will be good for all the citizens of the community. After ordinances are passed they can later be modified if they become a hardship to the population of the town. We can always re-visit it if that proves to be the case.
Marty Stetson
410-778-0569
In Response to “Disturbances”
To the Editor:
“Your publications June 16th “Disturbances” featured reports that after a police officer stopped a chestertown resident on Rt. 301 for an equipment violation, ‘the driver was found to be suspended.’ Eh? Does the Chestertown Spy intend to treat us often with such tidbits?”
– G. Whitman, Rock Hall
Editors Response
In Response to “Tallulah Sniffing Around”
In Response to “Editorial: Chestertown and Food”
Dear Spy — Three cheers!!! (and three exclams, obviously)
After a couple of years of looking at the food scene, I see so much progress and promise, and am also starting to ferret out the obstacles as well. With the rising number of artisans and growers, the quality of the food we produce is excellent, and big-city markets are so close, that a pipeline is slowly starting to build. But distribution and transportation remains an issue.
And then there’s the question of whether our locals are willing to pay the cost of high-quality food. And whether we have enough locals who are comfy enough economically to support a “real” market. These new problems and new times demand new solutions and a vanguard of people willing to promote them.
I read an interesting article recently about using the internet to be the “middleman” between artisans and restaurants/markets (wired.com, wiredscience, May22nd) Also, have been following the building of the Easton Market Square (you can google it). Creative ideas for the industry — and more food for thought.
–Elise Kolaja, Chestertown
June 8th, 2009
In response to “Kent County Becoming Geezer County”
To the Editor:
Thank for writing and publishing such topics of general interest. It’s good that we are concerned about change, but let’s look at the positives as well as the drawbacks. Kent County may be aging, but it has also been accruing people of substantial accomplishments, many of whom have chosen to move to this area because of quality of life issues. The demographic shift creates more of a demand for our better paying jobs, especially in the service sector (lawyers and their staff, design professionals, restaurateurs, etc) and for health care. At the entry level, the demand is growing for better skills, for example, for a mason or landscaper who can execute his trade skillfully, rather than cheaply. Thirty years ago, for example, if you built your house of brick, it was with “Chestertown Reds” laid up without variation, Now we have a local demand for craftsmanship, and for better service. So, while we are aging we are also growing more diversified in our achievements, and more appreciative of skilled labor – both benefit a community significantly.
And then, there is a well recognized trend for Boomers to continue to be actively employed through what had previously been thought of as the (fallow) retirement years. I’m thinking, it might help to spice up the quantifying with some more profound thinking about quality.
–Peter Newlin, Chestertown
June 4th, 2009
