APRIL 1 - APRIL 7, 2000
APRIL 7, 2K
When you can't log on to Penn Com
Good morning. It is 8:46 and I finally got on to the net. I've been writing
other things while I was waiting so I have something someone sent to me, let's see if this
works. If it doesn't I'll have to do something else, but if it does, enjoy it and we will
see you soon.
It didn't. So here is an excerpt from an episode of Cornplater I am writing. Enjoy it
and we will see you soon.
CORNPLANTER CHRONICLES
FROM PART EIGHT: It was at that table in those early months of the
winter, Monroe and Morris hatched the plan to take Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky.
Cornplanter watched and realized that his role was one that would spell the end to the
nations that lived there. He watched, he understood, and he even offered advice.
Cornplanter was involved. If he wasn’t then the United States would have no use for
his people and they could very easily suffer the same fate.
He struggled within himself.
"I feel as if I am wrestling with a bear," he told his brother, Handsome
Lake. "I feel as if I am holding his jaws apart with my hands and my strength is
diminishing. How much longer will I be able to hold them? Will the bear tire first or will
I? If I let go he will devour me. I can’t let go. I have no other choice."
Handsome Lake, himself wrestling with his own bear, offered consultation and comfort.
"You are not just the leader of our people, brother. You are our guardian. That
imposes additional responsibilities on you as a man. You must not only take us on the
safest and best path, you must also see to it that there is no threat in the forests that
the path travels through. You must explore both sides of that path and you must eliminate
every threat that exists in the forest. You must do that before you take the people
through. You are the Guardian of our people and our history. Without you we would not even
exist today. You will do what you must."
Cornplanter took his brother’s words to heart. He knew they were true and honest.
If the survival of his people meant the fate that awaited the western tribes, then that
would be what would happen. Handsome Lake was right. He was the Guardian.
CORNPLANTER CHRONICLES
VOLUME FOUR PART NINE
By Harold Thomas Beck
THE WINTER
The words of his brother haunted him through the winter. Cornplanter stayed to himself.
It wasn’t that he disliked anyone. It wasn’t that anything had changed. It was
none of those things. It was that for the first time Cornplanter had turned inward and was
examining the two very distinct parts of himself.
He understood all too well the ambitious desires of the white men. In Monroe he saw the
white men epitomized. He was a man with a soft exterior. He was a deceptive man. The soft
exterior only served to cover a man with an iron will and the internal cold heartedness to
achieve what he knew he wanted at all costs. That and that one thing alone was what no
other Indian could understand, not even Joseph Brant.
Cornplanter understood. He understood because beneath his skin he was white, too.
He did not readily acknowledge it; but all through his life he knew it was there. He
knew it time after time when the other war chiefs would react to what they believe the
white enemies would do. He knew it when he would go against what they believed and would
invariably guess that the white men would do just the opposite. That happened because in
spite of his Indian upbringing there still was a part, buried as it was, that made him
think like his enemy.
And in thinking like the white man, Cornplanter understood him, too. He understood the
iron interior and the desire to conquer. It was there in all white men, but more in some
than others.
He remembered the French.
They had strange mannerisms. They held themselves apart, even from one another. The
officers were below the Royal appointees who governed. The traders were below the soldiers
who served below the officers. And while the same caste system existed for the English, it
was not as pronounced and as accepted as with the French. With them it was a way of life.
With the English it was an order in which things were accomplished. That order, when it
suited the English, would change. That was evidenced by the turning of officers like
Washington who created their own order that broke down many of the barriers between the
whites.
Indians like Brant never understood that. Brant wanted to change himself. Brant wanted
to be white.
Cornplanter recalled time and time again when Brant would arrive with his men dressed
as British soldiers and he, himself, dressed in the uniform of an English aristocratic
officer. The Mohawk chief was an excellent mimic. He had copied the mannerisms and even
the speech of the English aristocracy to a detail that if you did not know you were
speaking to a Mohawk, you would swear it was an Englishman.
That impressed the other Iroquois war chiefs. It impressed them to the extent that they
placed their trust in Brant. Cornplanter stood alone and in many cases he and his people
paid the price for that. The Seneca were attacked and they were not trusted even when a
fragile alliance was struck. Cornplanter would have none of the frivolity. He would have
no part of the show of the trappings of imagined grandeur. He saw no good coming from
allying themselves too closely with any one side. So when the fancy Brant spoke of joining
with the British to crush the Americans, Cornplanter would oppose him and would ultimately
stand alone. He would stand with only the southern Seneca, while those to the north along
Erie would side with Brant, taken with his obvious appointments and apparent power.
Looking back that winter, Cornplanter understood how they were taken in by the British
and Brant. Looking back, Cornplanter knew he had been right all along.
He wandered the frozen river’s edge north and south of his town. He did that
frequently. As he wandered he would remember. He would remember and he would assess the
life and the decisions he had made.
It was on one of those days in early March he had gone out early to the north. He came
upon the ruins of the town Brant and the British had burned. He remembered they burned it
out of frustration when they came in and found everyone gone. Scouts told them of the
approaching war party and he had decided to escape into the hills to the east and wait for
the time to strike. He remembered how vehemently Red Jacket and the others opposed him in
his decision. He remembered them calling him a coward and saying he was afraid to face
Brant. He also remembered how difficult it was for him not to kill Red Jacket at that
moment.
Cornplanter continued to wander north along the winding river’s edge. He came to
the place where he and his braves attacked the retreating army that was made up of British
soldiers and Mohawk warriors. He thought of the cries of pain as they fell on the
surprised war party. He could remember crushing a British officer’s skull with his
war club. He could still remember the sound as the bones cracked under the force of the
blow. He remembered the blood that seemed to explode from the head of the man he had hit.
And he remembered his eyes, too.
They were eyes he could never forget. They were blue like his. They were the exact
shade of blue as his. And there was something about his face. There was something that
seemed familiar. Cornplanter did not understand why that single man, that single enemy
would make such an impression on him. He had killed hundreds before him and many hundreds
after him. But at that moment, at the time that his arm and his war axe descended upon the
young officer’s head, those pieces of time were frozen in his brain forever.
Cornplanter stood at that spot for a very long time. He stood alone and he remembered
all those who died that day. He remembered them and he particularly remembered the young
British officer he had killed.
"What was it for?" he asked himself. And as he asked he knew the answer but
the words of his uncle, the words of Kiasutha came to him. The came and he could hear them
as if Kiasutha himself was standing there on that frozen shore, too.
"It was for our people so that they could survive."
A chill came over Cornplanter. It was a chill that was colder than the wind that was
blowing down the valley between the mountains and across the frozen river. It was the
coldness of death and it was the coldness of the deaths of all of those who died fighting
for that land between the hills and at the bottom of the Sughar waters that flowed from
above.
That chill swept over the chief. It went deep into his bones and he began to shake from
it. At that same time a blinding squall of snow came down the valley and swept over him.
He turned away from it and he started up the creek away from the river into the trees for
shelter. As he did he had forgotten that he was following the same steps the women, the
children, and the elderly had taken to keep from attacking enemies so many times. In the
thickness and the darkness of the forest that covered the Sughar, there was safety and
there was shelter. At that moment, all Cornplanter wanted was the shelter of a stand of
giant hemlocks against the force of the storm. He knew he would find it if he continued up
the creek into the forest.
The rest will be out in the magazine later this month. In the meantime your
comments are welcome at editor@mlrmag.com.
APRIL 6, 2K
I like what you say better
Good morning. It is 6:20 A.M. and 36.1 degrees outside. I am sleeping better
these days now that 9 Main Street is about to pass out of my hands and in spite of the
fact a certain official in the Fire Department seems to be upset about me mentioning his
after hours cavorting. Sorry bout that - but not really. Anyway, it is taking longer and
longer just to read through your mail. I love getting your letters - I mean e-mails. What
you say is always better than what I have to say.
Wow. I ask for information on L. Frank Baum back in January and no one
responds. Then, I report that I am writing a book about him and all of a sudden the Error
decided to write about him in RTS (Round the Square for those of you not familiar
with the local rag). Is someone trying to cash in?
Same old, same old hemlock town, ah, Bradford town.
Guess I'll write about Ponce de Leon instead. It seems L. Frank was racist to the Native
Americans anyway......At least Ponce and the Timucuans got along.
And then there was one about swimming of all things. It snowed yesterday!
“ If you are not of the Privileged class, stay away from our pool! ”
This seems to be the situation with the Senior Citizens and other member of the
YMCA, displaced during the construction of the YMCA pool.
It is with irony that I have observed the Pennhills Club advertising pool
passes for $300.00 and up. And, yet, many who serve on the YMCA board of directors are
also members of the Pennhills club.
But yet, you have noticed by now that the Pennhills club is not accepting
YMCA members or Senior citizens looking for a place to swim..unless of
course they can afford to buy a pool pass. WHY?
Yes, during this construction, members who hold seasons passes or who wish
to spend a hot summer afternoon for a day at the Callahan pool (paid for by
the taxpayers of Bradford) will find an even more restricted amount of time
they can enjoy the pool, in addition to restricted time already created by
swim team activities, etc.
Not to mention visitors who come to Bradford who desire to use the pool they
paid for (the daily motel room rate) and find it crowded with displaced YMCA
members. Signed “A Bitter Pill to Swallow”
I hadn't thought about it like that. And this guy keeps popping up!
Thought you would like a little more info on Baum.......
1875
The Empire, of which Baum is editor, is discontinued. Baum opens his own print shop in
Bradford, Pa., and works for The New Era newspaper. The
Chittenango city directory also lists him as a salesman for Neal, Baum & Co. Wholesale
Dry Goods.
Someone should write a book about this guy! Somehow I am sorry The Empire closed.
Maybe they could use a reporter.
Was it really Frozen Food Month in March after all??????? See below.
*************************************************************
The dietitians of Canada want to remind you that, although March is National
Nutrition Month, healthy eating is something you should do every month of the year. (Oh
my God! I can just imagine what Jerry is going to do with this!)
The more than 4,500 dietitians across Canada will begin promoting healthy eating in
earnest throughout March. In the meantime, here are a few quick tips:
Fresh Vs frozen
According to the University of California at Berkeley Wellness Letter, nine out of 10
people believe that fresh vegetables are more nutritious than frozen or canned vegetables.
This is not always the case, unless the fresh items are really fresh. Nutrients are more
or less "locked in" when produce is frozen or canned.
Just like Canadians to rely on a report from America to make their point. As for the
rest of it, eating something or healthy eating..........I won't touch with a ten foot
pole. You opened this up. I didn't.
Some one is interested in whether or not we are going to restore our links. Yes. ASAP,
too. We might even put one in for Bradford Club, too.
Subject: Just in case you haven't had enough.......
"To throw obstacles in the way of a complete education is like putting out the
eyes." -Elizabeth Cady Stanton, pioneer women's rights advocate
Test Your Women's History I.Q.
Fifteen women to identify by their achievements
If you would like to be able to print out the whole quiz with answers in a single set,
please do! View all the questions and the answers together, in a format
allowing you to print out the full set. The answer to each question below can be found
with the orange ball. (What orange ball? I don't see any ball let alone an
orange ball!) Good luck!
QUESTIONS
Which mother led a 125-mile march of child workers all the way from the mills of
Pennsylvania to President Theodore Roosevelt's vacation home on Long
Island? (Who cares? Just like a woman to nag the poor guy when he is at
hunting camp.)
One of the most important Union spies and scouts during the Civil War was a Black woman
who had escaped from slavery. Can you name her? (Probably Aunt Jemima or Ruby
from Amos and Andy.)
Before the 1960s, farm workers in the U.S. were not paid even the minimum wage, and had no
influential representatives to fight for their rights. What part did Dolores Huerta play
in changing this situation? (Did she sleep with Caesar Chavez?)
The line of beauty products she created for African-American people made her the first
Black woman millionaire in the United States. Who was she, and when
did she do this? (It was Sahpire from the Amos and Andy show! And if not her,
Diana Ross for sure.)
She came to the U.S. when she was a teenager to study science and stayed to become
"the world's foremost female experimental physicist." Her most famous experiment
disproved what had been thought to be a fundamental scientific law. Who is this
outstanding Asian-American scientist? (Was it Susie Wong?)
She took her job as "First Lady" seriously, traveling the country and the world
to gather information about the problems and concerns of workers, children,
minorities, and the poor. She wrote a daily newspaper column and made frequent radio
broadcasts. Who was this active wife of a president? (Martha Stewart! And if
it isn't her it has to be Jane Fonda.)
When the Mexican Revolution of 1910 reached the Texas border, she and her friends
organized La Cruz Blanca, The White Cross, to take care of the wounded. They nursed people
from both sides of the fighting. She was also known as a journalist and community
activist. Who was she and where did she live? (I met here when I lived in
Texas. A fine woman. You could always find her on the same street corner in East Austin.
Her name was Maria something.)
Who was the last reigning monarch of the Hawaiian Islands, deposed when American business
and military interests wanted to annex Hawaii to the U.S.? (That definitely
is Jane Fonda. Ted sold their mansion last week.)
She opened "Hull House" in a run-down Chicago neighborhood, a community center
to improve conditions for poor immigrants. The program of English-language classes,
childcare, health education and recreational opportunities soon inspired hundreds of other
settlement houses throughout the country. Her name? (This one is really easy.
It is Catherine Zeta Jones! She was in that Hill House movie and now she and Michael
Douglas are expecting. What ever happened to his sexual addiction problems? Was he cured
by Emillo Estevez?)
Daughter and granddaughter of Paiute Indian chiefs from Nevada, she lobbied
Congress, wrote extensively, and traveled across country during the late 1800s lecturing
on the hardships brought upon Native Americans by the U.S. Government. Her name? (Easy
one! Princess Summerfallwinterspring.)
Her 1939 Easter Sunday concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial drew a crowd of
75,000. Who was she, and why was she singing there? (Dorothy on her return
from Oz and she sang Somewhere over the Rainbow followed by an rendition of Follow
the Yellow Brick Road. She insulted 37 midgets and was forced to apologize on the
radio the following day.)
Who printed the first copy of the Declaration of Independence that included the signers'
names? (Benjamin Franklin's live in - a woman by the name of Rosie something.
She incidentally jammed the presses and 250 copies of Poor Richard's Almanac were
ruined. Ben was rather perturbed and threw her out. It was rumored she went to live
with Sam Adams. She had a penchant for making beer and we all know it was Sam's only real
weakness, beside Rosie.)
Clara Barton (1821-1912) is best known for founding the American Red Cross, but she also
played a vital role during the Civil War. What did she do? (During the
bombardment of Fort Sumpter she was the first to sing The Star Spangled Banner. That
in itself did not distinguish her. It was at the end when she coined the phrase "Play
Ball!" and the war was on.)
She is regarded as the greatest ballerina born in America. Her father was the Chief of the
Osage Indians. Can you name her? (This is easy. It is Princess
Summerfallwinterspring. Howdy Doody saw her in a performance of Swan Lake and offered her
the gig on his show. She was supposed to have a thing with Thunderthud, but rumor was she
was being kept by Mister Bluster.)
Why is Rachel Carson (1907-1964) considered the mother of the environmental
movement? (Her son has to be Ralph Nader!)
The National Women's History Project
7738 Bell Road, Windsor, CA 95492
www.nwhp.org
(707) 838-6000
Fax a P.O. to (707) 838-0478 FAX
E-mail us at nwhp@aol.com. Request our free printed
catalog
Or order now from our on-line catalog Home On-line catalog Free Print Catalog
N.W.H.P.
Network History links National Women's History Month
N.W.H.P. staff Reported programs Costumed performers Ideas to use Quiz page Women's
History Organizations © 1997-2000 National Women's History Project. All rights reserved.
Last updated October 20, 1998. Mail comments/ questions to: nwhp@aol.com.
Let's hope this is the absolute end of Women's History Month!
Send comments to editor@mlrmag.com.
APRIL 5, 2K
What people say
Good morning. It is 25.0 degrees and it snowed last night. The ground is
covered with that white stuff.
The comments on our local political scene are very interesting. They are because of not
only what the people commenting say, but where they live, too.
Take this one for example. It came from sunny southern California.
Let me get this straight. You and your buddy buy a building, ask for a building
permit, the city refuses you, the local churches rise up against you, and they put a
referendum on the local ballot to outlaw bottle clubs (which you never intended to be) and
then they pay you 50,000 for a building you paid 25,000. To top that off you were defeated
in the last election and now the county in which you served is in financial trouble
because there is no one who understands the books. This has happened all since November,
too. Hell! Donald Trump should take lessons from you, not you from him.
From Kentucky:
It is good to see that the level of intelligence in City government has not
improved since I left for all time in 1972. I follow the various Bradford on line info
services but you are the most informative and interesting. I read the ERROR and understand
why you call it that. Keep up the work you do. You convince us daily that all of us who
left made the right choice.
From England.
I still have not forgiven you for your comments about Great Britain not being so
great. I am still angry about you putting down Women's History Month. Putting that aside
for a moment you are to be commended for making a profit on a broken down building in the
short time you did. Do all the politicians there have sawdust for brains?
From Germany.
Hey Bud! Great job on the building. You are giving them hell and I love it. The
entire company reads you every day as I print out your column for them. They love the home
town flavor because I hear it time after time that Bradford sounds like their home towns.
Just a note to let you know that we are out here reading about the fiascoes that you seem
to find, create, or stir up. We love you.
From Canada.
What next? Are you going to put in a Sperm Bank or is that just a spoof? How about
an abortion clinic. You could really stir up the religious right down there with that one.
Can I invest in your next venture? You do sound like the Donald Trump of Bradford.
From Central Pennsylvania.
You and Donny may share the same birthday, but you have better hair! Hope you voted
today.
From Texas.
You continue to make me roll on the floor laughing my ass off (ROFMAO) at what goes
on where you live. Your whole county is less populated than Round Rock and it seems all
the retards are left with the smart ones out here in the big world. The Blue Bonnets are
lousy this year and go George W for President!
What more can I say? Mornings like this are wonderful. You write my column for me. Keep
doing it at editor@mlrmag.com.
APRIL 4, 2K
Get it right for once!
Good morning. It is 48.6 degrees and rainy at 6:11 A.M. The temperature is
about to drop and the rain will change to snow by evening. The daffodils are in jeopardy
once more along with the other flowers that have stuck their heads up early.
Good news! I saw Jerry Clark Friday night, which incidentally was the last few hours of
Women's History Month/Frozen Food Month. He reported that he was off the couch and back
with his wife where he belonged.
"You didn't help things with those reports from Florida allegedly seeing me with
that blonde. Would you get it right for once!"
Apologies were given all around. Sharyn insisted all along that it wasn't Jerry, but
when he refused to acknowledge his brother, Tom, I saw it as a dead give away. Would you?
Speaking of getting things right, The Error is still at it.
I saw the humor in the Club Bradford episode. It was there from the beginning. It was
there with inaccurate reporting of what they believed Club Bradford was as opposed to what
it was intended to be. There is a referendum on today's ballot just because of that.
Mike Schreiber, Era reporter, once more in his article about Foster Township
delaying a vote on adult oriented businesses says:
"Township resident Tom Riel -- who attempted to bring a bring-your-own-bottle
nude nightclub called Club Bradford to an empty storefront on Main Street in the city --
was at the meeting but didn't comment.
"Riel proposed opening the club in January."
The bring your own bottle part is and has been 100% inaccurate. The Error reported
that, re-reported that, and continued to the point that the referendum made it to the
ballot. Much ado about nothing! Alcohol and bottle clubs were never mentioned, ever. But
what is more is the reporting about us not doing any kind of business in the city. He
reports:
"The city bought the building on the condition that the men don't open any
adult-themed businesses within city limits and Riel drops his lawsuit against the city.
"
I signed and agreement to abide by the Ordinance and forego any rights I had because
our application was prior to the Ordinance. That may sound minor, but when I open a Sperm
Bank on East Main Street I don't want the Error claiming that I violated my
agreement with the city.
Just for the record, I have withdrawn from my financial support of Dino Ross and his
proposed Dildo Factory. Even though it would employ 17 people and his market was virtually
assured through e-commerce, I saw it as a conflict because Dino wanted to use a second
floor of a building currently occupied by a Law Firm. Until he moves into Foster Township,
or maybe even the LERTA area of Lewis Run, I cannot give him financial support.
Many ideas have come to me by way of citizens wanting to make a killing in the Bradford
Real Estate Market. Just like Donald Trump, I am sitting back and carefully weighing each
and every proposal. After all, Donny and I share the same birthday. He is two seconds
older than me.
Comments are welcome at editor@mlrmag.com.
APRIL 3, 2K
Happy Birthday Cindy
Good morning. It is 51.3 degrees and very rainy at 6:15 A.M. Nothing much is
happening here except the new Chamber of Commerce Director is starting in Bradford today. The
Error had its usual opening interview. We've seen those before many times. We saw it
with John Yale and that other one (Dianne Galt) who both were Main Street Managers. The
article is very upbeat. All the pluses there are in Bradford! All the pluses but where is
the business?
The Downtown Merchants' Association is one of the pluses. How many belong now? Six?
Seven? How many merchants do they have on Main Street anyway? But there isn't going to be
a Club Bradford and that was a gift from God, or was it City Council? The Error
would have you believe that.
An unsigned editorial appeared in the paper last Thursday. It was called "Recipe
for easy money." It was well written. We know Jimmy didn't write it right away
just for that reason. I don't take exception to anything said in the article. Well, not
most of it anyway. That one line paragraph kinda stung a bit:
"No one except the owners of this building and a few perverts wanted this nude
club, that's no understatement, but for City Council to buy the building for twice the
purchase price is ridiculous."
Ouch! A few perverts? I know I am one of the owners and was not included in that
pervert category, but throwing rocks like that was a bit extreme.
Perverts?
Last Thursday there was a show just across the state line up in Limestone. Featured in
this show is a man who plays the piano, makes up music and features the foulest and
crudest language anyone has ever heard. The place was packed.
And who packed it?
A member of City Council was there. A high ranking Fire Department official was there.
And so was my partner, Tom Riel.
Granted, there were no naked women, but had a woman got up on top of the piano and
started barring it all for them, I seriously doubt that any of the three would have gotten
up and stormed out shocked by the sight. And oh yes. The same three have each gone out to
Turtlepoint to see ole' Busty and have even had her finest parts adorn their shoulders and
cheeks. But I guess as long as it is out there, anyone can be a hypocrite. Anyone can
oppose anything as long as it makes good print or is politically expedient.
What I don't understand is why Marty, that's Marty Robacker Wilder, did not put her
name and her picture (and she is an attractive lady, too) on her editorial? I would have!
I do every day. I just don't understand that one.
A few perverts?
Go to the Bradford Club and had Club Bradford opened we would have done a land office
business in Groucho Marx glasses and moustaches so they could conceal their identities.
And oh yes, there are the lawyers, the real hypocrites. They would have been there, too.
One in particular, I can see him now, pawing and trying to impress the ladies. I remember
him doing that to the wife of a friend of mine in Carnegie's (when it was Carnegie's) not
so very long ago. But he's no pervert; just an adulterer and a real scum bag. But he is
such a nice guy, too - in the daytime at least.
And Marty you really don't have to look very far from your own desk or you own backyard
to find a few more perverts. We both know what I am talking about. And you call a few
people names like perverts. Is what we both know is going on acceptable all of a sudden?
Or is it that you have another name for that?
I didn't believe you to be that naive, Marty. I really didn't. There are either more
perverts out there than you realize, or maybe, just maybe they aren't perverts after all.
Maybe Marty the perverts are the people who tell us something that isn't true. And if that
is the case, step across the room and join us. Perverting the news with articles like I
saw today is far, far worse than going to see a beautiful woman take off her clothes. Yes
it is.
So, before you start calling names like I do, think twice. And, Marty, if it is worth
writing, put you name on it and adorn it with your lovely likeness.
And Cindy, wherever you may be, have a nice day.
Your comments are welcome at editor@mlrmag.com.
APRIL 2, 2K
Joining in and beating a dead horse
Good morning. It is the first day of Daylight Savings Time and who knows what
time it really is? This will be a short column today designed mostly to be read by those
of you who are catching up or will read tomorrow.
I am tired of the continuing coverage of the little Cuban boy who came to this country
in an inner tube and his mother drowning in the attempt. I am tired of looking at Janet
Reno attempt to justify why this boy is not entitled to due process and the rights that we
afford to common criminals. How can she put herself in the same inner tube with the little
boy's mother and understand what she wanted for herself and her son?
There are those who would say the last thing we need in the country are more Cubans.
I've heard that. They say send him back.
But Cubans have been in this country since the Spanish American War in 1898 and they
will always be here because of what we are and what we stand for. And that is important -
what we stand for. Think about it.
If this was 1961 and an East German mother was scaling the Berlin Wall wouldn't we be
cheering her on? If she was holding her six year old son in her arms and the Russian
controlled border guards were shooting at her wouldn't we have held our breath as she made
her run for liberty and freedom?
Imagine her. Imagine she makes it over the wall and the barbed wire. She is running
across the no man's land between the east and west sectors. The whole world was watching
through the miracle of Telstar and the guards keep firing at her. She doesn't give
up her flight. She pushes on through the hail of gunfire. And then, just as she is about
to reach the freedom of West Berlin and the American sector, the bullets hit their mark
began to hit her in the back.
One by one the 7.65mm ammo from the AK-47's rip into her body. Each one dealing her an
equally deadly wound. Each one taking the life out of her. But some how she stays on her
feet. Some how she stumbles to the edge of freedom. With no regard for her own life
she keeps going. She wants her son to be safe and free. And, the moment before she finally
succumbs to the fire, she holds out her son and he is snatched by an American soldier and
taken into the free and democratic zone of West Berlin.
What would have happened back then?
What would have happened if the East Germans, the Russians, and the boy's father
demanded he be given back? What would have happened if they paraded nuclear missles
through Red Square in support of his return? Would we have given into their demands? Would
the boy have been sent home?
More than that, would Bobby Kennedy have attempted to shortcut the appeals process that
everyone who lands on this free soil is entitled to?
No. He would not and we would have never given that boy back to an oppressive and
totalitarian regime.
So I ask you on this rainy Sunday from the Allegheny Mountains in Western Pennsylvania
in lovely downtown Marshburg, what is different today from then? What has changed and, if
it did, why did it change? If you can't answer that, then maybe Janet Reno needs to
go to Cuba instead of him. I am very certain that Fidel Castro would welcome her with open
arms. Maybe Ms. Reno needs to remember history and consider her opportunities and
blessings before she insists due process be suspended for one small boy.
Your comments are welcome at editor@mlrmag.com.
APRIL 1, 2K
The Bradford Big Rig Ban BY TOM CLARK
Bradford City Council, in their usual "close the barn door after the horse got
out" expediency, moved last week to ban tractor trailers and other oversized vehicles
from parking on our city streets.
I could write this off as better late than never but, being the boat rocker that I am,
I have to point out that this is one more example of our inefficient town leaders creating
an ordinance without providing a solution, almost a half year after yours truly recognized
the problem and moved to rectify it.
In the wake of their moronic attempt to slide through an ordinance to stop Tom Riel's
bottle club proposal, the Bradford buffoons are about five months behind me on the big rig
issue.
In my Mountain Laurel Review column, dated 10/16/99, I wrote the following: "What's
with all of the tractor trailers parked on every Bradford city street? No one cares about
this? Our town looks like a Truckstops Of America. I'm happy that these people who drive
them are gainfully employed, but do you have to park them in front of your houses? If the
city recognized this as a problem, perhaps a lot could be maintained somewhere and they
could charge a nominal fee for parking there, then ban rig parking on the city
streets".
Here we are, five months later, and City Council is acting like they had an original
idea. How much research was done on this problem? I would venture to say a Hell of alot
less than what I have done.
Someone probably complained to City Council and they said, "OK, let's ban the big
rigs from parking on the city streets". And then they patted each other on their
backs, like they just had a major accomplishment.
Before I brought the parking problem to the public's attention, I spoke with Dick
Cavallero, the Bradford City Chief of Police and the man who will be forever known as the
one who lost the District Justice election due to the Bradford Era's bias towards
their golden boy, Chris Hauser (yes, I'm still pissed that the Error could slant
a front page headline to make Dick look like an unqualified candidate).
Cavallero told me that the rigs, being fully licensed, have every legal right to park
on our city streets. Even though they may cause traffic problems, including visibility
hindrance, there wasn't much that could be done, at least from the police interpretation
of the law.
As usual, Cavallero's way of explaining the situation made sense. It looked like, at
the time, we had a problem with no solution. I went further into the problem, speaking
with truckers and residents, and formulated a remedy to alleviate the truck parking
dilemma. But, alas, my plan fell on deaf ears, except for Cavallero, who thought that it
was a workable scenario.
Now, along comes City Council with another of their hind-sighted enactments. What will
the ban do? Obviously, remove the big rigs from the city streets and solving a pesky
problem. But, what have they done? They have made the situation worse for our hard-working
truckers and, might I add, registered voters and taxpayers.
Sure, Council can feel good about themselves for actually doing something to better the
city, which is a rarity. But, in their usual "screw everyone else, we're OK"
mentality, they have created a whole new problem for the truckers who now have to find
other places to park their rigs.
Does City Council care? Hell, no! They are justifying their needs, let the little guy
fend for himself.
Here's where an effective City Council would rise to the occasion and come up with a
solution that would satisfy everyone. Instead of eliminating the problem by slapping a ban
on truck parking in the city, they should have worked with the truckers to solve this
dilemma for everyone's welfare.
My idea was to use a small fraction of the money Ray McMahon and the OECD wastes daily
and set up a central lot for the truckers to use. They could build the lot on one of the
many city-owned parcels, have pull-through accessibility and be near one of the US 219
interchanges.
The parking lot could be asphalt or gravel and maintained by the city. Allow for 15-20
spaces for the trucks and install small islands for the drivers to plug in their engine
block heaters on winter nights. The city could charge a nominal fee, say $30 a month, to
cover the cost of the electricity and maintenance.
I spoke with a few truckers who agreed that it would be an asset to them and the city.
It isn't easy for them to maneuver around the city streets. The problem isn't so much that
they want to be parked near home but that there simply aren't enough places for them to
park, period.
Perhaps, but I doubt it, City Council will realize that they aren't solving the big rig
parking problem but, on a grander scale, are creating a new problem for some its citizenry
and will act accordingly.
And I'm sure that one of them will take credit for coming up with an idea to build a city
maintained lot.
I don't care, I'm not looking for credit as a man who can create solutions for our
poorly-governed community. I just ask that Council does the right thing and quits trying
to screw everyone who wants to make a living in this town.
Comments are welcome at editor@mlrmag.com.
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