Oh would you look at that! Our Sheriff is doing commercials!!

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It’s true!!! Our very own High Sheriff Jenkins is doing commercials for the anti-immigration organization known as FAIR (Federation for Immigration Reform). Look at him all decked out in his Frederick County finery:

Take a gander at FAIR’s Twitter page when you have a moment. Take special note of the  articles they chose to share. Breitbart is one of their absolute faves. Perhaps you remember a few years back when the sheriff accepted a trip to the southern border of the U.S. that was paid for by this organization. In this FNP article from 2014, right after Jenkins took this trip, we learned that:

Jenkins expressed concern about a News-Post article stating that the Southern Poverty Law Center labeled FAIR a hate group. It unfairly associated him with the anti-illegal immigration organization, he said.

Well that concern must not have been too great because here he is three years later in a Public Service Announcement for that organization! The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has a lot to say about his particular organization. Here’s some warm and fuzzy quotes that the SPLC complied from  FAIR’s current president, Daniel Stein:

“I blame ninety-eight percent of responsibility for this country’s immigration crisis on Ted Kennedy and his political allies, who decided some time back in 1958, earlier perhaps, that immigration was a great way to retaliate against Anglo-Saxon dominance and hubris, and the immigration laws from the 1920s were just this symbol of that, and it’s a form of revengism, or revenge, that these forces continue to push the immigration policy that they know full well are [sic] creating chaos and will continue to create chaos down the line.”
— FAIR President Dan Stein, “Oral History of the Federation for American Immigration Reform,” interview of Dan Stein by John Tanton, August 1994.

 

Immigrants don’t come all church-going, freedom-loving, God-fearing … Many of them hate America, hate everything that the United States stands for. Talk to some of these Central Americans.”
— FAIR President Dan Stein, interviewed by Tucker Carlson, Oct. 2, 1997

Ted Kennedy?! Umm, okay. After watching the video, we hoped that our Sheriff wasn’t aware of this group’s history. (Be sure you read through SPLC’s link, lots of interesting thoughts on eugenics and white supremacy from FAIR’s original founders).  However, after coming across the 2014 article about the trip, we realize that is NOT the case. He’s known, since at least 2014, that there were many concerns about this organization. Those concerns, however, were not enough to dissuade him from being a part of their very Public Service Announcement.

Jenkins does have one supporter that wrote an LTE that appeared in today’s paper. Too bad for the sheriff that he no longer lives here.

And although this doesn’t involve Jenkins at all, we want to make sure you saw Dr Ben Carson spouting his revisionist history of slaves as the original immigrants on a quest for a better life. I thought only liberals were into rewriting history?

 

 

Let’s Yokelsplain how very bad the meeting went this evening!

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Right now our collective blood pressure is through the G.D. roof. If you were following our Facebook updates of tonight’s meeting, you would have seen that things were NOT going well.  Because of our collective parenting duties, we were not able to turn in until around 5:30, about thirty minutes in. The hour that we were tuned in for caused this Lady Yokel to have to pour a glass of wine.

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Not sure if this is big enough, but it’s a start!

So we joined the discussion about whether or not the application for the Urbana rezone should pass. Now, we did not hear some of the comments before 5:30, however, at some point Jessica used the word challenging.  The main problem some of the council members have is with the word contiguous as it applies to this property and the opinion that this motion should have been three separate applications instead of the one.

Billy, who was absent from the second hearing of this issue mind you, is trying, in his most condescending voice, to explain some things. He used the word “challenging” every time he got a chance just to try to stick it to Ms. Fitzwater.  Had the nerve to say that if this was “too challenging” for them to figure out then how would they construct a 20 year comprehensive plan? Went on rant after rant about how this council never does anything, he can’t get questions answered blah blah blah. It was horrible.  He even goes after the legal staff, deriding all their fancy law degrees since they can’t answer his leading, dishonest questions. And hey there Urbana parents, Billy claims y’all are just fine with the overcrowding in your district. Tis not an issue! Billy also tried to goad Bud into explaining his reasoning. To which Bud states, “I am not responding to any of your inquires.” You know what is challenging Billy? Having to listen to you!

Kirby, who was quiet for a very long time, tells us that the reason he is being so quiet is that if he said what he really thought he would be kicked out of the room. But please don’t confuse his silence for him not standing up for what he believes in!  That’s right folks, just because his fellow council members had a difference of opinion concerning some aspects on how this application was brought forth Kirby has to muster up all the stoicism he can to contain his rightful outrage!  How very brave of him! He does eventually succumb to his baser nature and calls his fellow council members corrupt! Billy then echos: Yeah corrupt!!!

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Wouldn’t be the first time!!!

To this Jerry cannot not keep quiet!! Nor should he!! We are all sick and tired and sick and tired of fools throwing out accusations without any proof. So our hero of the evening, the esteemed Mr. Donald, tells the idiots to define what exactly is corrupt. Because all he sees is people trying to make decisions based on their understanding of the law! He tells them to “back it up or stop talking!”

We then hear:

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Tony’s motion is voted down. M.C. puts forth a new motion stating why she’s against the application in its current form. States that she would like it to be resubmitted in three separate applications. It is at this point that we must address Tony’s behavior and tone this evening. He’s very upset that this application isn’t going to get approved and tries time and time again to pin M.C. in a corner. He calls her motion “convoluted” and says that the last time she made a motion it landed them in court. Real mature, huh? We think that Tony is really used to getting his way, so when someone challenges him he doesn’t know how to handle it in any kind of constructive manner. Kinda like the bookends. Great job Mr. Chmelik, you are now officially one of them.

We are going to have to watch the second half, which reconvened at 7:00, tomorrow. Those three have put us over the edge tonight.

Local reporter speaks to importance of media diet

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This is not the first time your Local Yokels have harped on the importance of being a media locavore. Even if you don’t care for the flavor of what’s available here, if you don’t buy then it will disappear. Then we will really be in the dark. Do you think the Washington Post is going to tell you what Shrelauter has been cooking up with any regularity? (Hint: they are not gonna.)

Local reporter and start-up media maestro Katherine Heerbrandt of The Frederick Extra is an excellent resource. She also shared her experience as the invited guest of Rockville United Church to talk to the congregation after the service. They wanted to discuss the importance of the press and how to ensure that their media diet was nutritious and free of toxins. It sounds like a recipe club many people could benefit from.

We have always been up front that our information comes heavily seasoned with our point of view. It is certainly valuable to look to other sources to achieve a balanced diet. There is no way to get a “Fair and Balanced” perspective from a single source. The fact that a source would tell you such a thing should make you immediately suspicious; news is not like candy, you can consume all you want. If they are threatened that you may sample another source there’s reason to think it is a very serious problem. This is why, much as it pains us, we are willing to look at something we expect to be of no more substance than dried out marshmallows (say WHUT?) or noodley appendages.

FYI: Bill Nye, The Science Guy, will be here on April 20, 2017.

Just like nutrition science, what you learned in science has value here. Look at your sources and see if there is peer review in evidence. If you see a headline that stands out in particular, find out what the other sources are saying. Do they corroborate one another or refute one another? Chances are if something sounds like an outlier preposterous, (EX: President Obama gives “Hanoi Jane” Presidential Medal of Freedom) it probably is. You will want to verify that before running with it. This is getting decidedly trickier, the more like satire our reality becomes, so it means we must be even more cautious with our data. If the same source is always an outlier, chances are there is a problem with their research they are a liar, paid by the fossil fuel industry (oh yes, just like in science, it can help to know who is funding the report).

This should go without saying: stop taking a bunk source into account when you identify it. If you look around, and all of the links you find seem to rely on a single source and you are unsure of its reputation, form a hypothesis and test your hypothesis about the reliability of that source. You will come to a valuable conclusion. Scientific thinking. It’s not just for scientists.

Also, good journalists are heroes! Stop taking them for granted!

 

It’s your “In like a lion out like a lamb” drinking game extravaganza!

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It’s March y’all! And even though we haven’t had much of a winter this year (thanks Al Gore!), lions and lambs are still on our mind. Maybe it’s because Kirby pulled this out when describing Trump last week:

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Or perhaps we just like sweet little lambs:

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This could end badly! Just like a county council meeting!

As always, this game is just for the chuckles. Be responsible and stay informed.Away we go:

We start at 5:00, which is not the norm,  we suspect it’s due to Billy’s whining about start times. We know he’ll shoot down the minutes, so we won’t bore you with that. How Shrelauter will act when the Finance Department asks them to extend the contract with the outside audit company is up to debate. If they don’t see the value in an outside company checking the books, let’s all encourage them to pull the Lion’s Tail.

A decision will be made concerning the rezone request for the Urbana application. The last two council meetings were devoted to this issue. You can read our coverage here and here. We are all hoping for smart, responsible growth in our fair county. We need adequate roads, schools, police, fire and rescue, libraries, and retail to make life good! Let’s toast to smart growth with our Smarty Pants cocktail. We can figure this out together!

On break until 7:00. We may hear a squeak out of Billy depending on the end time of the first part. Oh, he’s become so tiresome to us.

After the council reconvenes, there is a 2nd reading on a bill to reallocate the county recordation tax. Read all the details here.  If this is in any way, shape, or form painted as some kind of tax hike, slam back a pitcher of Red Lion.

Onto public and council member comments. Our crystal ball isn’t giving us a real clear signal this week. However, we can posit that since Billy was absent from the last meeting he’s going to have a thing or two to say. When he and the yin to his yang, start a yapping, sip on your Warm Wooly Sheep cocktail, since we all need some comfort by this stage of the meeting.

Straight talk. Coming right at ya. Wait, whut?

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It looks like #kirbydelauter has a brand new website up and running. We are guessing it is just to make sure you know all the ways you can give him your hard earned cash money, for anyone who still has something left after the rush to invest in gold bouillon. Honestly, if we could send him a negative check for all the pain and suffering we have endured over the last almost 2 years we would. Maybe we will send him a bill instead. Like an invoice. Not proposed legislation. We are still waiting to see him come up with one of those on his own. We may as well be Waiting for Godot.

He also wants to make sure you know who all his friends supporters are.

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Who doesn’t seem like they belong here? Anyone???
Also, we think the absolute best part of his new site is under the contact tab. Kirby would LOVE to hear from you. So, how about it? We definitely think you should give him a piece of your mind. Or ours. Be sure to let us know if you actually get a response that features “straight talk and straight answers.” It seems out of character.

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We didn’t say it.

Kirby uses “similar” Lennie Thompson quotes and other fresh nonsense….

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We skipped around the recording of last night’s meeting. If you have two plus hours to spare, please knock yourself out. It was all devoted to a continuation of the hearing for the Urbana rezoning application.  Being subjected to one of the county attorneys cracking open a 1974 dictionary to read the definition of the word contiguous was too much to ask of your Lady Yokels. We do know that there wasn’t a decision made, final vote will occur on March 7,  and that our old pal Billy didn’t show up:

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Is Kirby going to fall backwards one of these days?

Council member comments were fairly tame. Tony wants us all to know that he was out of the house from 6 a.m. -11:45 p.m. last Tuesday and almost didn’t have a chance to wish his twins a happy birthday. (Happy Birthday Tony’s twins!) But, he thanked everyone for their civility. Kirby had NO comments this week! Jerry wants people to come to Brunswick this weekend for BBQ and wooden train whistling. Jessica informs us that it is the 40th anniversary of the Frederick Arts Council and there will be a celebration at the Weinberg. M.C. applauds the sale of the Fredericktowne Mall and Bud makes sure all of our county employees know how much they are appreciated.

Kirby’s on our radar again. He’s a facebooking and writing his monthly diatribe for the noodley appendage. Curiously, Kirby thinks that Trump is worthy of some biblical quotations:

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We almost chocked when we saw this in our inbox this morning!
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This would explain a lot actually!

Who is the lion in this scenario? Not to mention wise and knowledgable!!!???  Because LOLLOLLOL, he cannot be speaking of Trump! But, then again, making connections is not one of Kirby’s strong suits:

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We will never, as long as we live, tire of this!!!

It’s the first of the month and that means it’s time for the “Guest Columnist” (what in the world happened to Galahad Sweetbottom?) to shine. We won’t go over the whole Hough ethics bill as we have already covered it here and here. And The Frederick Extra had an excellent piece  about the whole Hough political nonsense here. We do think ,though, that  we are going to have to check on Kirby’s donations over the next year. It will be fun to compare/contrast his donations with Senator Hough’s.

Ethics nonsense aside, we would be remiss if we did not point out a few quotes that made us chuckle. First off, is this imaginary conversation Kirby has between the reader and himself:

Now, you may say: “Delauter, you’re crazy, maybe it was just an odd coincidence?” Really?

OH MY!! Well, he got the crazy part right. Kirby’s been stepping up his attempts at creative writing lately. We know that imitation is supposed to be the sincerest form of flattery, but when one does it so poorly it’s hard to feel good about it.

Kirby sums up said piece with a quote in the spirit of former County Commissioner John “Lennie” Thompson:

Similar to the words of former County Commissioner John ‘Lennie’ Thompson: If Jan wins, you lose.

We can’t help but wonder how Mr. Thompson is going to feel about Kirby using his old campaign slogan, If the Developers Win, You Lose, in this manner. Please let us know, Lennie.

 

 

Lock your doors Alderman O’Connor! Kirby’s coming…with friends!

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One nice thing we can say about #kirbydelauter is that he’s always good for a laugh! Whether he’s crafting tear drop flow charts that are impossible to decipher or word smithing about excrement slamming into wind chimes, he never ceases to amuse us. Of course, it would be a lot more funny if he wasn’t in any position of authority in our county. But hey, in today’s world, we have to get our jollies where we can. Here is this weekend’s comic relief:

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Whew!!! Once again Kirby knee jerk reacts to an issue that he obviously doesn’t understand. We can only assume that he’s pontificating about an article in yesterday’s paper about making Frederick a sanctuary city. What does that entail asks thee? Basically, it entails law enforcement and other governmental entities not asking about an individual’s immigration status. Kinda similar to the military’s no ask no tell policy concerning gay service members. And guess what Kirby? If you bothered to read this article all the way through, instead of just singling out Michael O’Connor’s name, you would have seen that the Frederick Police department has already codified this policy. Here’s what the good alderman had to say about the proposal to adopt this policy across all levels of city government:

“For me, it’s a statement of support for the residents of our community who work, who live, who go to school, who pay taxes … in the city,” he said. “The reality is, for people in our community who are here, regardless of their documentation, they should not have to live in fear.”

So, we aren’t just letting people come into our house uninvited? That’s not what he meant? Why is Kirby always getting things so very wrong?

In other what the what news: If you’ve driven down Route 340 recently, you’ve probably seen a huge black and yellow billboard yelling at Senator Ronald Young for being a big meanie to Governor Hogan.According to said billboard, Senator Young has gotten his legislative role oh so very wrong. Doesn’t he know that, as a legislator, he’s supposed to be against all the legislation the governor no likey? Just like Congress did when Obama was president! Well, said billboard leads you to a cray cray website that shows just who paid for said eyesore (Side note: try not to put so many words on a billboard in which drivers are speeding by people!):

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These people have cutesy little names for everything!  Let’s try to break all these “harmful” bills down. The Sunshine Tax, fact checked here by the Baltimore Sun, is a piece of legislation requiring energy providers to get a larger percentage of their energy from renewable sources. The potential costs to taxpayers? .48 to $1.45 a month! Makes you wonder who was lobbying to get this sidelined. Doesn’t seem like that’s going to drain the ole family coffers. The rain tax is a nickname that’s been driving your Lady Yokels crazy for a few years now. It’s called the Storm-water Management fee people!  It has to do with impermeable surfaces. You know the surfaces that rain can’t penetrate? Houston has a huge flooding problem because of them. The danger in Maryland is not only flooding, but water pollution. When the water doesn’t get filtered through the soil all the mess it’s mixed with on land goes right into the water. And Governor Hogan’s repeal, wasn’t really a repeal y’all. We still need to comply with the EPA regulations.  Now what about the scary sounding Road Kill bill? Well, that’s hyperbolic nonsense as well. You can read it here, but it’s basically a system for scoring transportation projects. And according to the Maryland Reporter:

To drive home the point that the new law gives Hogan carte blanche to do as he pleases, lawmakers added this concluding sentence: “[N]othing in this Act may be constructed to prohibit or prevent the funding of the capital transportation priorities in each jurisdiction.”

In other words, Hogan can fund whichever road, bridge and transit projects he wants regardless of the score it receives.

All he’s gotta do is give “a rational basis for the decision. . . in writing.”

Like, “it will make the road safer.” Or “it will reduce traffic congestion.” Or “it will help economic development.”

We are baffled as to why the Maryland Republicans are against the creation of a commission to oversee and recommend redistricting recommendations. We suppose they must have some of those famous reasons we keep hearing about.

So curious as to why the Maryland Republican Party would spend their money on a billboard and website attacking Senator Young in a non-election year.  We also hear from our fans that the Maryland Repubs are running ads on WFMD attacking both Jan and Ron over the downtown hotel. But hey, who are we to tell them what to waste  spend their money on?  Guess they are counting on their cutesy “scare words” to get everyone worked up. Took us about fifteen minutes to refute everything on that website. We can only hope that those who read that billboard will do their due diligence…or at least read our blog.

Your oscillating Yokel round-up!

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Happy Friday y’all!!! Lots of good stuff to point out to you today, so let’s get started!

Adam Umak, proprietor of Frederick County Fact Check, had an excellent LTE in the paper this morning. Make sure you take a look at it. We cannot let Senator Hough and Delegate Afzali get away with this thinly veiled attack on our County  Executive!

Speaking of our CE,  in today’s Political Notes we were made aware of a Town Hall meeting next week. So, if you’ve got anything to say, get your behind over to Winchester Hall at 7 p.m. this upcoming Thursday.

Now for your end of the week comic relief. Kirby weighs in on the dueling ethics bills presented to the Maryland General Assembly this week:

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You can’t wordsmith Kirby! 

Let this quote sink in folks:

“Never notified any land owners and then claims she knew nothing of the plan after the excrement hit the oscillating wind chime.”

That is our new favorite Kirby quote! Man oh man, you can’t make this stuff up! Have a great weekend!

Dueling bills. The Hough huff and guff continues.

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State Senator Michael Hough is in the paper with an LTE today attacking Jan Gardner as though she is opposed to ethics reform. What a bunch of garbage. This blatant partisan attack is casting aspersions (asspersions?) at a bill crafted by (edit for clarification/correcting oversimplification) crafted by the Ethics Task Force with attentive feedback from the bipartisan League of Women Voters. That’s a good litmus test for are you being a jerk on purpose.

Hey, you know, a little birdie chirped that former Commissioner Kai Hagen asked at the Hough/Afzali Dog and Pony Townhall of Pretend Listening if he would pledge not to make this a political attack and, nope. He would not. How interesting…

Also, we were asking amongst ourselves the other day: what gives with this double bill double bill trend we are seeing lately? It occurred at the last County Council meeting. It occurred in a really bizarre fashion with Ron Young’s bill to extend the statute of limitations for childhood sex abuse crimes. And this hot mess of ethics.

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In our duels, some are Youngs. Some are scrappy. Some are huffy.