Next week’s grand opening that gets underway at 6:30p.m. will include holiday entertainment and the official lighting of over 1 million lights by Mayor Johnny Piper. Special guests including Santa Claus, the Channel 4 News Snowbird, Charlie Brown and Mrs. Tennessee International Cydney Miller will be at the ceremony to visit with the children.

Christmas on the Cumberland officially opens November 24 and runs through January 1. It will be open to the public nightly from 5-10p.m. and 5-11p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Admission to the event is free.

Walking through a garden of holiday lights...

Santa Claus will be at Christmas on the Cumberland visiting with from the children every night from 5-9p.m. and on Fridays and Saturdays from 5-10p.m. with the exception of December 11 and 12.

This year’s Christmas on the Cumberland will feature two nights of family fun in Santa’s Workshop. On December 18 children and parents can come and decorate their own Christmas cookies supplied by Kroger. Children and their parents can return the following night on December 19 to create wooden Christmas ornaments with materials provided by Lowes Home Improvement. Participation in Santa’s workshop is 6-8p.m. or until supplies run out. in the RiverWalk Museum.

Visitors can also enjoy performances by local dance academies during Christmas on the Cumberland. On November 27 Christy’s Dance Connection, Natalie’s Dance Network and Acro Dance Express will perform beginning at 6p.m. Lana’s Dance Center will perform November 28 at 6:45p.m.

Christmas on the Cumberland is presented by the City of Clarksville and is sponsored by Wendy’s, The Leaf Chronicle, Charter Communications, Clarksville Family Magazine, WJZM, Lamar Advertising, TVClarksville.com, Q108 FM, The Beaver 100.3 FM, Eagle 94.3 FM, and Z97.5 FM, among others.

For more information on Christmas on the Cumberland visit www.christmasonthecumberland.com or call Clarksville Parks and Recreation at 931-645-7476.

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The Roxy Regional School of the Arts gave us 11 actors to do our three skits in the cave with Brendan Cataldo as their director. The Roxy Theatre also gave us a delightful gatekeeper.

The 2009 Haunting History Tour Actors

Swan Lake Golf Course allowed us to use their parking lot for overflow parking.

Volunteers stand ready to serve refreshing drinks

Over 40 volunteers poured and stirred complimentary cups of hot chocolate, put up and took down the tiki torches that lined the lake, sold glow necklaces and tickets, took us into the cave to see the skits and manned the parking lot. The volunteers were a happy bunch, their enthusiasm catchy.

Haunting History is a fundraiser by the non-profit group, Friends of Dunbar Cave. Monies raised are used to help preserve and protect the park and educate the public.

• The Friends Group was able to talk APSU’s Clean Cut Productions into producing an Introductory Film that explains the history of Dunbar Cave.
• The Friends group filmed interviews of local residents who have stories to tell about the Good Ole Days at Dunbar Cave.
• The Friends group designed, bought and installed a monitor in the lobby that shows films to the public especially the one made by Clean Cut Productions.
• The Friends group runs Trees to Trails, Cooling at the Cave and Spring Fling each year. These events are free to the public.
• The Friends group bought interpretive signage for the park and will continue to do so.
• The Friends group pushes for an Interpretive Center at Dunbar Cave. They’ve used the money they have raised as an incentive for the State to also support that effort.

The 40+ Haunting History volunteers were an impressive bunch. They came willing to do whatever was needed and also to have a good time. They did both. This event has side benefits, like making everyone fall in love with the cave and the Friends of Dunbar Cave group. Several people became members during the event.

The Skits

The first skit

I received a lot of positive feedback about the skits from the public and the volunteers. I was thrilled to overhear a man quote the first skit about bats to his wife and talk about how many mosquitoes bats eat. They both agreed that they should build a bat house to try and attract bats to their property.

The first skit was meant to dispel fears about bats and replace them with true information. At the end of the skit the actors showed the audience that a live bat was hanging on the ceiling. It was with excitement and awe that people looked at it, not with horror and fear.

An Eastern Pipistrel Bat

The second skit

The second skit, Haunting Memories, was created from what certain people had to say about the good ole days at Dunbar Cave. Woman 1 represents Marguerite Rubel and Mary McDaniel. Woman 2 is Rachel Tate and Jacquie Miles. Man 1 is Jimmy Dunn and Ronnie Hunter. Man 2 is Zoot Parker who was known as the best dancer in Clarksville. While talking to the actors I was able to fill them in on who they were representing.

The third skit

Skit three, Haunting Questions, is about the Native Americans who made the art on the walls in Dunbar Cave. Information about the topic was gathered on visits to Indian Mound sites, like Pinson Mounds in West Tennessee and from books purchased there.

Many people come out of the event smiling and saying, “Wow, I learned a lot!” They seemed pleasantly surprised by that, maybe because they were older by far than the children doing the skits.

The Roxy actors were great. I watched them rehearse and was totally impressed. Then, of course, they just kept getting better. A week before the event we took them and the director into the cave to see how the “stages” looked. After that we were treated to a bit of a tour by Michael Fulbright who works at the Park. The kids were thrilled and learned a lot about the cave.

One of the many tour groups heading to the cave

Sponsors

The Friends of Dunbar Cave wish to give special thanks to these sponsors:

Some of the many young people who enjoyed their haunting tour of Dunbar Cave

• The Roxy Regional School of the Arts. With a more than busy (as usual) schedule, John McDonald gave us wonderful actors and director.
• Bill Larson of Clarksville Online gave us free advertisement and negotiated the using of the Swan Lake Golf Course for overflow parking. He also brought the actors and early volunteers a lovely dinner on Saturday and ran activities in the cave during the walk-through and the event. Thanks to Bill also for pictures of the actors.
• Thanks for the cooking of that Saturday dinner goes out to Mr. and Mrs. William Keen.
• Thanks to Mr. Jeff Vaughn the City’s Golf Pro and manager of Swan Lake Golf Course for the use of their parking lot.
• Thanks to David Shelton, Christine Piesyk, Turner McCullough Jr., Gabe Redel, and Curtis Davis; for dinner Friday, and their help manning the tables on both nights.
• Thanks to Jack and Suva Bastin for all their hard work and help.
• Thanks to Tennessee Trails making Haunting History their event also.
• Thanks for donations from Batteries Plus, Lowes, Rural King and Krogers.
• Thanks for their invaluable help in promoting the event: WJZM 1400 AM Radio, Clarksville Online, the Leaf Chronicle and Clarksville Family Magazine.

Volunteers who helped on this event

Actors:

• Scene 1 – Haunting Facts:Becca Winters, Patrick Long, Hallie Sampson, Tim O. Smith
• Scene 2 – Haunting Memories: Kayla Coleman, Jacob Ritchart, Emily Ritchart, Autumn Crafton, Jaymin Burr
• Scene 3 – Haunting Questions: Frances Dennis, Christian Boyd

Contributers and Volunteers:

Volunteers Kim Chandler and Blayne Clements on Friday night

Barbara Wilbur, Jim Hancock, Richard Gildrie, Meredith Gildrie, Jack Bastin, Suva Bastin, John Sneed, David Boen, Randall Boen, Bill Larson, Kitty Madden, Beverly Fisher, Paul Schwab, Merri Hinton, Bob Lyon, Carol Sequra, Kyle Sequra, Christine Pieysk, Kelly LaPlante, Bobby LaPlante, David Shelton, Curtis Davis, Turner McCullough, Mike Vogt, Kathy Vogt, Kim Chandler, Blayne Clements, Stephen Walker, J.B., Brooklyn Lyle, Dan Racklin, Marilyn Racklin, Beth Racklin, Jill Eichhorn, Barry Kitterman, Hannah Kitterman, Lee Gray, Gabriel Redel, Bryan Valentin, Kathryn Myracle, Matthew Fowler, Beth Robinson, Faith Robinson, Katherine Kolodzie, Gloria Miliken, Elaine Foust, Carl J. Powell, Mr. and Mrs. William Keen

We wish to give a special thanks to the Dunbar Cave Park Staff! Amy Wallace, Adam Neblett, Robert Wells, Teresa Campbell, Michael Fulbright and Blaine Hargis

Park Interpreter Amy Wallace with some of the many pumpkins carved by Suva Bastin and herself

Photo Gallery

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Statewide, the senate district 22 race was viewed as a bellweather for future political upheaaval. Many early voters were repulsed by the last minute negative advertising of the incumbent. Now there is a recount challenge and accusations of voter misdirection. Did someone take a page from the Karl Rove ‘Book of Dirty Tricks?’ How will all this play out in the end?

This year, the state senate race for District 22 was one of the most closely watched battles in the state. Media and political pundits all across the state were keen to see if incumbent Rosalind Kurita would survive the intra-party effort of her own Democratic Party to unseat her in retaliation for her betrayal vote in January 2007 which gave control of the state senate to the Republican Party. Would Lt. Governor Ramsey’s fundraising encouragement save the day?

Knoxville, Chattanooga, Nashville and Memphis political insiders and pundits were all speculating that her party affiliation switch was inevitable, no matter what the outcome of this election. This battle alone had marked Tennessee as a ‘State in Contention’ for the November election.

Kurita was known to be a aggressive, hardball campaigner. That is a given when one reviews her previous campaigns against Brenda Radford and Wallace Redd. However, many opined that a new low was reached when in the final two weeks of the campaign, character assassination material against challenger Tim Barnes repeatedly starting filling voters mailboxes. These colorful over-sized supercards seriously misrepresented Barnes’ law practice and principles.

The smears were so detestable that on election day, thirty-eight Clarksville lawyers placed a full page ad in the Leaf Chronicle denouncing Kurita for the smear and demanded she apologize for the misrepresentations. Attorney Mark Olson wrote a separate letter ridiculing the senator’s serious apparent lack of basic understanding of our legal system. He called her actions, “shameful, and beneath the dignity, and the honor, of a Tennessee Senator.” Even the Nashville Bar Association took note of the ad as “regrettable.”

As a state senator, she, herself, is a lawmaker. Lawyers work to enforce those laws enacted by the legislature. Thus, the lawyers contend that her assault on Barnes invariably was an assault on her own lawmaking role as well.

Winning by the slim margin of 19 votes, what acts of contrition will she offer? Many early voting supporters were embarrassed by the last minute smear campaign against Tim Barnes. Currently, everyone is awaiting the results of a recount and an investigation of alleged voter misdirection. Will she seek to mend broken fences with her fellow Democrats? Will she fulfill East Tennessee political pundits predictions and finally switch to the State Republican Party? Will she apologize to the legal community for so negatively savaging the legal profession? Thus far, no “mea culpas” have not been forthcoming. At least, not publicly.

Noting that so many of her fellow legislative colleagues are, themselves, lawyers or have close associations with lawyers, should she prevail in the recount, her return to the state senate chamber should prove rather interesting indeed, to say the least.

A slew of last minute negative media from the incumbent begs the question- Whatever happened to taking the high ground? Is the incumbent so fearful of her challenger’s appeal? After all, as the incumbent, shouldn’t your record speak for itself?

August 2nd was the close of early voting in Tennessee for the State and County primary ballot. The election Commission saw brisk and fairly steady traffic for most of the day. Many citizens are dismayed by tactics that have been attributed to the incumbent, Senator Rosalind Kurita. Phone canvassing is said to have been conducted among Black voters, urging them to get out on August 7th and vote for Senator Barack Obama and Senator Kurita. Since the presidential candidates are not listed on the August ballot whatsoever, this seems a deceptive ploy to solicit the Black vote.

Senator Kurita has not made much of a show in the Clarksville arena. Personal appearances have been low on the general public’s radar. She has, however, bombarded voters’ mailboxes with printed material, including glossy supersized postcards with unauthorized pictures of herself with Governor Bredesen, inferring a nonexistent endorsement. There’s that TV spot that berates her challenger for effectively seeking to collect judgments for his wronged clients.

Her campaign mailings proclaim dedication to helping lower high fuel and energy cost. Having just been appointed to the Governor’s Study Committee on Alternative Energy Technology and Production this Spring however, is not going to impact gasoline prices anytime soon or in the near future. The committee won’t even submit its preliminary organizing report until December.

She rejected the State Democratic Party stance on preserving HOPE Lottery Scholarship funds for only scholarships in favor of the Republican stance to set up a commission to dole out $99 million from the fund for K-12 school construction, focusing mainly on adoption of geothermal heating and cooling systems. There are 95 counties in this state. Recall that our own county commission, just this spring, rejected this alternative system as being too costly, despite its admitted environmental advantages.

Challenger Tim Barnes reminds voters that while she hails the senior citizen home nursing care reform legislation that passed this past legislative session, she, herself, did not vote for its passage. Financial disclosure reports show that Senator Kurita has received large donations from the nursing home industry lobby. They are her largest contributor.

While the senator’s party affiliation is officially Democratic, she did cast the lone vote to deny John Wilder continued tenure as Speaker of the Senate and as Lt. Governor. With that switched vote, the agenda and priorities of her party were placed on the back-burner of the state’s Republican Party bandwagon. Overnight, committee chairmanships were dramatically reassigned. Legislation favored by her own party has been repeatedly buried in committee or rejected on the senate floor. She voted with the Republicans to pass legislation which seriously cut some injured workers benefits under the state’s meager Workers Compensation Program. ( SB 3424- 5-20-04) The good senator has so faithfully supported the Republican Party cause that Knoxville and Memphis political pundits hail her as the GOP’s best asset. State Republican fundraisers have been directed by the new Lt. Governor to support her re-election campaign. One pundit has even intimated that, no matter what the outcome of this election, her party affiliation switch was practically written on the proverbial wall.

Kurita also voted with the Republicans to deny Senator John Wilder’s attempt to save the Tennessee Plan, the state’s method for selecting Supreme Court and appellate court judges. Wilder had heralded the plan as a sound method to shut out partisan politics in selecting judges. Kurita said she considered her vote, ‘procedural,’ not indicative of her stance on th Tennessee Plan. She wouldn’t declare her position on the plan, instead saying, “she’s a nurse and not an attorney.” In summing up the past legislative session, The Knoxville Sentinel has recognized her with its “Best Republican Democrat” award.

Challenger Tim Barnes, a Clarksville attorney with no nursing home industry lobbyist ties, has pledged to remain true to the Democratic Party priorities and issues. He has received the endorsement of many professional, collegiate groups and private citizens. The APSU College Democrats declared their support for Attorney Barnes and a punitive phonecall was placed to the TBR about the group’s action. The Tennessee Federation of College Democrats, TFCD, have also come out for Barnes. Will another phonecall follow their action as well? TFCD President Leah Kirk said, “College Students across the state are tired of the degrading acts of Senator Kurita to the Democratic party’s values and ideals in Tennessee,” Kirk said. “We are standing up for our issues. We need someone in the State Senate willing to vote with and for Legislators who care about minimum wage, HOPE Scholarship funding, as well as funding to allow more Tennesseans the opportunity to attend college,”

Barnes has received the support of the Tennessee AFL-CIO and Clarksville’s Labor Organizations United Together (CLOUT). CLOUT includes the Clarksville Montgomery County Education Association, the National Association of Letter Carriers Branch 364, the American Federation of Government Employees, the International Association of Machinists Union Local 1296, the Plumbers and Pipe Fitters, the Central Labor Council and the Clarksville Firefighters. Barnes benefits from having the support of the most prominent labor union in the state, which is heralded for their ability to mobilize voters in favor of their candidates.

Barnes’ campaign also has the endorsement of the United Auto Workers, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, State Association of Firefighters, United Steel Workers, Laborers 386, Machinists District 711, Tennessee Carpenters Regional Council, the Stage Employees Union, Communication Workers of America Local 3808, American Federtion of State County Municipal Employees L.L. 2173, the Building and Construction Trades, the University of Tennessee College Democrats. Additionally he has received support from former Governor Ned McWherter, House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh, Senate Democratic Leader Jim Kyle, Mike McWherter, Nashville Sen. Thelma Harper and Memphis Sen. Beverly Marrero.

Much of this intra-party opposition comes as a result of Senator Kurita’s vote to switch control of the senate to the Republican Party. She said her reason for aligning with the Republicans was because ’she wanted to be somebody.’ Was it not enough to be the District 22 Senator? Well, she is now Speaker Pro Tem of the Senate. This is a largely ceremonial position, true. In theory, she is now the Assistant Lt. Governor of Tennessee, but that is a non-existent position under the state constitution. It would also be another non-publicly elected state office which Kurita has consistently said she opposes. What other temptations draw the senator’s glaze: U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, the governor’s office, even? Was this all some form of ‘tit for tat’ for the Democratic Party’s failure to support her bid over Harold Ford Jr. for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by former Senator Bill Frist?

In January 2007, Senator Kurita said of her Senate Speaker vote, “It was purely a vote of conscience,” and “I have not asked for anything for myself.” [Leaf-Chronicle, January 11, 207] It would seem that pledge certainly was applied to the Democratic Party, which received only two of nine senate committee chairmanship appointments under new Speaker Ramsey. Former Speaker Wilder had given Republicans four of the nine senate committee chairs under his tenure.

Financial reporting records show Kurita had a substantial war chest with which to wage her re-election bid. The good senator is reported to have retained the services of Fletcher and Rowley, the renown Nashville public relations firm, known for negative advertising. According to the Nashville Post politics blog jam, Sean Braisted said her biggest expense was to Fletcher and Rowley. Nashville media political pundits have speculated whether she was feeling stressed enough to unleash the hounds at Flecther as the campaign draws to an end. Judging by the caliber of her recent campaign mailings, it would seem that she has decided time has come to get down and dirty with this campaign. How else would you explain mailings criticizing an attorney for providing constitutionally guaranteed legal counsel to those who need it?

This letter was written prior to the cancellation of the DDP redevelopment meeting. However, it’s message is one that deserves an airing, so Clarksville Online has opted to run it with the caveat that, for now, the controversial blight ordinance is on hold.

The Clarksville Center Redevelopment Plan (CCRP) was approved recently by the City Council. On Thursday, January 10, 6:00PM, at Austin Peay State University’s Clement Auditorium, a meeting is scheduled at which the DDP (Downtown Business Partnership) and City officials will answer questions about the Plan.

The Plan is being challenged by concerned residents of Clarksville’s historic districts and downtown areas, the Tennessee State Historic Commission, the Tennessee Preservation Trust, and others because it contains unclear language. The document uses the term “Blighted” in describing the entire Clarksville downtown area, (with the exception of property owned by APSU), which allows for homes to be taken via eminent domain by private developers. Public meetings prior to the approval of the document were limited. No letters were sent; many in the Plan area were not even aware such a document existed prior to the Council vote this past September.

Mayor Piper stated “This is their (the DDP’s) plan. It is not the City Council’s plan.” The city sponsored the DDP through the development and approval of this document, and as mayor he is ultimately responsible for ensuring the property rights of Clarksville residents. Mayor Piper noted “Six (members of City Council) and myself were not around” when this document was developed. They were, however, present when the council voted in favor of the document. With that kind of thinking is this, and who is in charge? Who protects us and our property rights?

Think this will not affect you? Think again. This is only Phase I; there are Five Phases planned. If you own property in Clarksville, it can be condemned, razed and new construction erected, which will only benefit developers. (Photo at right: concerned citizens at the Dec. 17 Property Rights Coalition meeting)

Please attend the meeting and be educated on this issue. If you cannot attend, please contact your city council-member and voice your concern.

Editor’s Note: In submitting this letter to Clarksville Online, Shirley wrote: “The Leaf Chronicle doesn’t seem to want to print this Letter to the Editor….wonder why? Would it be possible to have you place it on Clarksville Online?”

One might believe I am only referring to the plight of the blacks. That is far from the truth. Throughout the history of the United States, there were servants of all ethnicities and both genders.

I make this statement as a prelude for my response to Leaf Chronicle editorial (12.31.07). The editorial addressed the division of funds generated by the Tennessee Lottery to fund the HOPE Scholarship program. The apparent position of the writer was that anyone who can not maintain at least a 3.0 grade point average doesn’t deserve a chance to achieve a college education. Let me remind that writer that there have been presidents of this country who had less than a 3.0 GPA, and some who had no formal education at all.

The Tennessee Lottery was enacted as be a carrot for those children and their families who are not financially capable of providing an upper level education for their children. Basically, it was enacted as a beacon of hope to the underserved population of our communities.

Although we (humanity) can be quick to condemn individuals who look and act differently from the way we’ve been taught, it serves no purpose to deny our children an education simply because they failed to meet a standard we arbitrarily set.

Setting the GPA at 3.0 is simply a means of establishing a permanent underclass within our society. In other words, as long as we have those who cannot meet our standards, we will have the workforce that can be preyed upon to do the menial tasks we choose not to do.

In 2005, our state legislators voted to sanction a lottery system to generate funds for use in assisting our youth in the realization of the American dream: “an opportunity to acquire a college education.” With our approval, Tennessee was moving in the direction of becoming an inclusive state. Modeling the lottery after the neighboring states of Georgia and Kentucky, officials put in place a program that would soon become a catalyst to help the state’s disadvantaged children become productive citizens.

Lately, a growing trend is focused on taking away this beacon of HOPE. There are those who feel the monies collected as a result of enacting the Tennessee Lottery could be used for other purposes. According to the Leaf Chronicle opinion, building schools should be one of those alternatives.

The writer of the editorial surmised that a child who maintains less than a 3.0 GPA is not worthy of receiving support from the HOPE Scholarship Fund. This position, I believe, is based on personal bias and ingrained indignation for the child who is struggling to get out of a cold bed in the morning, dress him- or herself and make it to the bus stop because they hope a better day is just over the horizon.

That horizon includes the Tennessee HOPE Scholarship, established to give deserving children a means of divesting themselves of the drab conditions they are forced to survive in each day of their lives. To these children, HOPE means they do have a chance to do better; they can strive to work for employers that will pay them more than minimum wage. It means not having to live from paycheck to paycheck. It means being able to afford to buy fruits and vegetables, having a real family, being able to afford medical insurance for themselves and their families, being able to provide dental care for themselves and their family, owning a nice car and being able to afford the fuel and maintenance required to maintain it, owning versus renting the house they reside in, and allowing them to build a retirement fund to be left to their children and their children’s children upon their demise. Believe it or not, ALL of these quality of life elements require an education.

Americans that I respect have vision, integrity, and pride. Let us stop stereotyping those who are less fortunate than we are and start encouraging our youth to reach for the stars. Simply put—Lets keep the HOPE in the Hope scholarship program.

The Leaf Chronicle statements demonstrate that they are sadly ignorant of the true situation on the ground in Iraq.

President Bush frequently defers questions about the surge by explaining that we must wait for that progress report from Petraeus.

Many Senate Republicans also have said they are waiting on the report before making any decisions regarding withdrawals..

…Such a strategy would make sense. The United States cannot simply pull up and leave Iraq overnight. Anyone who thinks that is hopelessly naive. – The Leaf Chronicle, Don’t reverse Iraq surge too quickly

Embarrassing things like this can happen when you drink the kool-aid served to you by the Bush administration and their lackeys in the corporate media. Lets take this editorial and break it down piece by piece and see what the facts really show.

The 30,000 U.S. troops deployed earlier in this year eventually will be drawn down. But if the troop surge is reversed too quickly, it also could reverse all of the progress that has been made this year.

The first step is that we must come up with a generally understood and accepted definition of what constitutes progress. The media has frenquently repeated grand statements like “victory” and now “progress” without understanding what do they really mean, thus the public is left confused, a state that the spinmeisters prefer. It’s fine for politicians to make vague statements, but the real world works on specifics.

Indeed, how can we have a meaningful gauge of the situation in Iraq, without everyone being on the same page, reading from the same book. Lets see a checklist, one which can not be changed or even tossed out depending on which way the political winds are currently blowing. That my friends would be real progress!

The administration’s initial definition of progress was, training the troops. Indeed we spent over 19.2 billion dollars training the Iraqi police and army units since 2003. Let’s take a look at where that has gotten us.

A Government Accounting Office report that came out last month found that since 2003, the U.S. gave $19.2 billion to train Iraqi forces. This was accomplished through emergency funding and a shoddy record keeping plan that is now coming back to haunt us. It seems there are serious discrepancies between what the U.S. commanders in Iraq said was issued and what was written in the property books.

As the fog of war has lifted, it shows hundreds of thousands of weapons given to the train-and-equip program are nowhere to be found. Missing are 110,000 AK-47 rifles, 80,000 pistols, 135,000 items of body armor, and 115,000 helmets. – U.S. is still ’sugar daddy’ to the world by Chantal Escoto

Most of these missing tools of war have likely gone to equip the insurgent forces fighting our troops in Iraq. Indeed the Iraqi police and soldiers we have spent so much taxpayer money training, have often actively been assisting the insurgent forces in killing our brave troops. Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne laid it out for us in a recent New York Times op-ed:

…This situation is made more complex by the questionable loyalties and Janus-faced role of the Iraqi police and Iraqi Army, which have been trained and armed at United States taxpayers’ expense.

A few nights ago, for example, we witnessed the death of one American soldier and the critical wounding of two when a lethal armor-piercing explosive was detonated between an Iraqi Army checkpoint and a police one. Local Iraqis readily testified to American investigators that Iraqi police and Army officers escorted the triggermen and helped plant the bomb. These civilians highlighted their own predicament: had they informed the Americans of the bomb before the incident, the Iraqi Army, the police or the local Shiite militia would have killed their families.

As many grunts will tell you, this is a near-routine event. Reports that a majority of Iraqi Army commanders are now reliable partners can be considered only misleading rhetoric. – The War as We Saw It By SPC. Buddhika Jayamaha, SGT. Wesley D. Smith, SGT. Jeremy Roebuck, SGT. Omar Mora, SGT. Edward Sandmeier, SSGT. Yance T. Gray and SSGT. Jeremy A. Murphy of the 82nd Airborne in the NYTimes

Indeed their view of the situation in Iraq is downright pessimistic. Yep, I guess the Conservative Republicans were right in the end, the media hasn’t been telling us the truth about what’s going on in Iraq; they have been sugar coating it…

To believe that Americans, with an occupying force that long ago outlived its reluctant welcome, can win over a recalcitrant local population and win this counterinsurgency is far-fetched. As responsible infantrymen and noncommissioned officers with the 82nd Airborne Division soon heading back home, we are skeptical of recent press coverage portraying the conflict as increasingly manageable and feel it has neglected the mounting civil, political and social unrest we see every day. (Obviously, these are our personal views and should not be seen as official within our chain of command.) – The War as We Saw It By SPC. Buddhika Jayamaha, SGT. Wesley D. Smith, SGT. Jeremy Roebuck, SGT. Omar Mora, SGT. Edward Sandmeier, SSGT. Yance T. Gray and SSGT. Jeremy A. Murphy of the 82nd Airborne in the NYTimes

Now, this administration and their enablers are down to grasping at the straws of progress at the local level, while still ignoring the major problems affecting the lives of the average Iraqi. Things like power, security considerations, running water, sewer service, access to gasoline in one of the most oil rich nations in the world.

At the same time, the most important front in the counterinsurgency, improving basic social and economic conditions, is the one on which we have failed most miserably. Two million Iraqis are in refugee camps in bordering countries. Close to two million more are internally displaced and now fill many urban slums. Cities lack regular electricity, telephone services and sanitation. “Lucky” Iraqis live in gated communities barricaded with concrete blast walls that provide them with a sense of communal claustrophobia rather than any sense of security we would consider normal.

In a lawless environment where men with guns rule the streets, engaging in the banalities of life has become a death-defying act. Four years into our occupation, we have failed on every promise, while we have substituted Baath Party tyranny with a tyranny of Islamist, militia and criminal violence. When the primary preoccupation of average Iraqis is when and how they are likely to be killed, we can hardly feel smug as we hand out care packages. As an Iraqi man told us a few days ago with deep resignation, “We need security, not free food.” – The War as We Saw It By SPC. Buddhika Jayamaha, SGT. Wesley D. Smith, SGT. Jeremy Roebuck, SGT. Omar Mora, SGT. Edward Sandmeier, SSGT. Yance T. Gray and SSGT. Jeremy A. Murphy of the 82nd Airborne in the NYTimes

It’s backed up by the Wall Street Journal as they reported in their story “Bush Focuses on Local Successes in Iraq”…

And even at the local level, progress is slow. In his report to Congress earlier this month, the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction said rebuilding is being crippled by power plant problems, mismanagement, corruption and weak spending on capital projects by Iraq’s central government ministries and its provinces.

Let’s conclude our dissection of the Leaf Chronicle Editorial with this:

There’s a tremendous amount of pressure resting on the shoulders of the former Fort Campbell commander. Not only is Petraeus the top U.S. commander in Iraq, but the eyes of the world will be on him and the report he presents to Congress next month on the war’s progress.

But that’s not really correct either, is it? You see, General Petraeus will not be writing the report that he will be presenting to Congress. Instead, he will be presenting a report which he had input on, but that was authored and compiled by the same political hacks in the White House who have been lying to the American people, Congress, and the world since this war began.

Those positions only hardened yesterday with reports that the document would not be written by the Army general but instead would come from the White House, with input from Petraeus, Crocker and other administration officials.

“Americans deserve an even-handed assessment of conditions in Iraq. Sadly, we will only receive a snapshot from the same people who told us the mission was accomplished and the insurgency was in its last throes,” warned House Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel (Ill.). – An Early Clash Over Iraq Report: Specifics at Issue as September Nears By Jonathan Weisman and Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post

Rahm Emanuel is right: we do deserve, and our soldiers should be able to expect, a neutral presentation of the facts, letting us make up our own mind on the information presented. But I do not think we will get that from our infamous “I do not recall, Senator” Administration.

Our troops can’t and shouldn’t be expected to police a civil war in a foreign land. They are setup in a situation where they are friendless, bound to fail, and targeted by all sides. Our troops are being injured and killed  in order to protect politicians and the politiically connected groups and organizations which benefit from this war being continued. There is only one way left to truly support the troops: bring them home now!

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Leaf Chronicle Editorial board should spend some time, and do more research, before penning future op-eds. If they do so, then perhaps they won’t be wrong on the facts, and they will appear to be better educated, when they discuss situations like these with the residents of our city.

Anonymous users hiding behind pseudonyms online frequently engage in hateful, bigoted, and mean spirited behavior. Abuse by a minority of the users of the Leaf Chronicle Story Chat has already caused several people to shy away from participation in the public discourse at the Leaf Chronicle’s web site, including myself. It’s just not worth the hassle of participating.

Even Yahoo! decided that story chat type forums were a bad idea without significant controls being in place to prevent abuse.

To Yahoo! News readers:

Yahoo! News is working on new ways for readers to comment on the news and participate in a discussion around it. While we work on our new community features, the message boards that were linked from individual news articles have been taken offline.

As they were set up, the Yahoo! News message boards allowed a small number of vocal users to dominate the discussion. In addition, related discussions from similar news articles were not easily linked.

Over the next few months, we plan to offer new discussion forums based on topics in the news and incorporating the latest features to foster a better discussion for all of our readers.

Neil Budde
General Manager
Yahoo! News

A meaningful step towards combating incivility at the Leaf Chronicle, would be to require users posts to display their real names and zip codes, as is done when the user sends in a letter to the editor. The ability of the community to apply peer pressure can be one of the best weapons for preventing forum abuse. Users should also be required to provide contact numbers viewable only by the staff of the Leaf Chronicle, which can then be used to contact and warn users who frequently cross the line of acceptable behavior. It also is a tool which can help prevent people from establishing multiple accounts to engage in abusive behavior.

Anonymity is a double-edged sword when it comes to an online community. While anonymity may allow people to feel more free and disinhibited to discuss otherwise embarrassing or stigmatizing topics, it can also be a community’s biggest enemy. Anonymity allows people to hide behind their computers while saying whatever they want with little ramification. Psychologists know that online community is far more disinhibited than face-to-face communications. Pair that disinhibition with anonymity and you have a recipe for potential disaster. – John M. Grohol, A List Apart

It’s been found in scientific studies that anonymity online frequently leads to abusive behavior which the person would have never considered taking part in when offline. It even has it’s own specific psychological term, the online disinhibition effect:

The online disinhibition effect — to two unique aspects of the Internet: anonymity and invisibility. The perception that one’s identity is hidden, beyond discovery, becomes intoxicating; people can express how they truly feel without worrying about being held personally accountable for what they say. – Flamed, The Stanford Daily

I seldom find reason to agree with Supreme Court Justice Anthony Scalia, but on the subject of online anonymity, I happen to find myself in strong agreement with the statement he made below:

Summing up the 1995 case of McIntyre v Ohio Elections Commission, Justice Scalia stated that anonymity ‘facilitates wrong by eliminating accountability, which is ordinarily the very purpose of the anonymity’. To create legal protection for words communicated anonymously without legitimate reason to expect ‘threats, harassment or reprisals’ was ‘a distortion of the past that will lead to a coarsening of the future’. – Justice Anthony Scalia as quoted in Net anonymity: free speech or cheap words? by Dave Amis

Free flowing discussions on issues of public importance can still take place even with the Leaf Chronicle being proactive in prohibiting personal attacks. It’s the duty of the site’s operators to ensure that people are not ganged up on, or attacked due to their beliefs, or positions on issues.

As someone who runs several online communities, I can tell you that to be successful they require active moderation by a trained, neutral, and professional staff, and this is something the Leaf Chronicle should seriously consider putting into place. Once people in the community see that the Leaf Chronicle’s staff won’t tolerate continued abusive activities, the level of abuse will drop, and civil discourse will increase.

“The Internet really amplifies everything,” says Jeffrey Cole, of the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California. “We have a lot of opinions out there. All of a sudden there’s a place we can go to share them.”

Add to that the freedom that anonymity provides, he says, and it “can lead to a rowdy Wild West situation, with no one to filter it.”

“It’s all things said reflexively, without thinking,” says Cole, who tracks the political and social impact of the Internet as director of Annenberg’s Center for the Digital Future.

“My guess is that if you went back to these people, a lot of them would have second thoughts.”

And if you asked them to add their name, as in a traditional letter to the editor?

“They’d be embarrassed.” – Web-Based Anonymity Often Leads to Abuse, a Fox News/AP article

“I was truly saddened to hear of your post on how you feel that this will “open Pandora’s Box.”

To amend the wording to state “one person and one person” would not change any stipulations on how many persons, which family members, or which species could marry. It would simply change the gender of the two persons marrying.

I have yet to see anyone running off to Canada in order to marry his or her daughter. Or, for that matter, anyone jetting across the pond to Spain to marry their beloved cat, Mr. Whiskers. It doesn’t make any logical sense that you would draw the conclusion of same-sex marriage leading to anything of the nature suggested in your post.

This amendment will discriminate against people in every aspect of Clarksville’s community. Let’s ponder that only since a Supreme Court decision in 1967 have mixed race couples been able to marry anywhere in the country. That’s right, 1967. Forty years ago my partner’s sister would not have been able to marry her husband. Maybe whoever reads this wouldn’t have been able to marry their sweetheart.

Generally, everyone realizes and agrees that discrimination based on ethnicity is wrong. Why is sexual orientation or gender identity any different? Where will we be in the next 40 years? I think that perhaps we’ll be looking back on this issue in forty years. How will our children perceive our response? How will our grandchildren perceive this? Will they think that we were completely prejudiced?

What if one day, your grandchild comes to you and tells you they are gay; will you be able to look them in the eyes and tell them that they don’t have the same rights as you? Can you honestly tell them that they deserve less than you? Can you explain to them why you voted their dreams away? I encourage each of you to search for your own answers.

Don’t listen to the lines that politicians will feed you. Have you ever met a completely honest public official that was able to see past his or her own re-election?

The issue is not whether you believe homosexuality or bisexuality is right or wrong. The issue is about whether you think it’s right to legally discriminate against someone based on religious beliefs. Do what is right. Do it for equality. Make a decision that you’ll be able to proudly tell your grandchildren about one day.”

Below is the original referenced text:

“This November, Tennesseans have the opportunity and responsibility to uphold marriage as being one man and one woman.

This thousands of years old tradition is the foundation of society for a reason. If we allow same-sex marriage, we open a Pandora’s Box that we can never close again.

If we open the door to man-man or woman-woman marriage, we cannot legally “discriminate” against a man marrying three women, or five men, or 23 people. We couldn’t “discriminate” on the basis of age or relationship either. A man can marry his children and sexually exploit them legally. We would not be allowed to criticize or prosecute pedophiles.

Illegal aliens would also be a thing of the past. One person could go to the border and marry a truckload of people and make them legal immigrant spouses. After all, who are we to judge his “love” for them? Please vote in support of traditional one man and one woman marriage on Nov. 7.”

BETH SABEL

Clarksville 37043

For more information on this subject, visit http://votenoon1tn.com/

There was a recent piece by MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann on his Countdown show, which covered the history of using Terrorism and Terrorists by politicians especially Republican ones for Political Gain. It’s very damning and you should really go watch it, it’s also available on Crooks and Liars where I first learned about the piece! Then come back here, and read the rest of this article!

1,000 Cellphones

We have all heard of the recent arrest of three men of middle eastern descent who were caught with over 1,000 prepaid cellphones.

There were a thousand cell phones that were inside one motor vehicle. a laptop computer, a camera. When you toss three brown skinned men into the mix, yep must be Terrorism.

“We didn’t know exactly what was going on. You hear on the news about these phones being used to detonate IED’s.” – Michigan State Police Trooper Patrick Sharkey

We then heard this ominous statement

Tuscola County Prosecutor Mark E. Reene said Monday that representatives of his office and Caro police had met with Sunday with officials from the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. attorney’s office. He said all the agencies were working together on the investigation. He thinks the men had a complex plan to attack the Mackinac Bridge.

Prosecutors charged the men with collecting or providing materials for terrorist acts and surveillance of a vulnerable target for terrorist purposes.

The three Dallas-area men arrested in Michigan on state terrorism charges are well-known to cell phone wholesale and retail shops in Texas where they live. They were a part of a brisk trade that exists in buying phones from Wal-Mart and other discount stores and reselling them to smaller shops.

It’s actually fairly lucrative they can buy the phones for 20$ at Wal-marts and resell them for up to 38$ at smaller shops in cities without a local Wal-mart

The FBI has issued their own statement on this situation:

They had no information to indicate that the three Texas men arrested with about 1,000 cell phones in their van had any connections to a known terrorist group. There is no imminent threat to the bridge linking Michigan’s upper and lower peninsulas.

We can at least hope that the charges against these men are promptly dropped and that they receive an apology from the Michigan prosecutors and from every single news organization which trumpeted these slanderous charges. I wouldn’t hold my breath if I was one of the three men. Even if they do apologize, I seriously doubt that this is reported as widely or as loudly as the initial news releases on this matter were.

The UK Airline plots

On to plot to blow up U.S. bound flights with gel explosives

Some interesting facts

U.S., U.K. at odds over timing of arrests: British wanted to continue surveillance on terror suspects, official says.

British officials knowledgeable about the case said British police were planning to continue to run surveillance for at least another week to try to obtain more evidence, while American officials pressured them to arrest the suspects sooner. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the case. -NBC News

A news organization quoted a top aid to President Bush as denying the account of the British officials while another U.S. official admitted it was in fact true.

I would bet real money that the top aid to President Bush is in fact the same man coordinating this Republican campaign of fear, Karl Rove or one of his Deputies. We all know his penchant for being an anonymous source in support of the Administrations policies, just ask Ambassador Joe Wilson and his wife Valerie Plame, the formerly clandestine CIA agent.

The plot was serious and dangerous to flyer’s according to the TSA and Bush Administration:

For that reason, the United States Government has raised the nation’s threat level to Severe, or Red, for commercial flights originating in the United Kingdom bound for the United States. This adjustment reflects the Critical, or highest, alert level that has been implemented in the United Kingdom. To defend further against any remaining threat from this plot, we will also raise the threat level to High, or Orange, for all commercial aviation operating in or destined for the United States. Consistent with these higher threat levels, the Transportation Security Administration is coordinating with federal partners, airport authorities and commercial airlines on expanding the intensity of existing security requirements. Due to the nature of the threat revealed by this investigation, we are prohibiting any liquids, including beverages, hair gels, and lotions from being carried on the airplane. This determination will be constantly evaluated and updated when circumstances warrant. These changes will take effect at 4:00 AM local time across the country. Travelers should also anticipate additional security measures within the airport and at screening checkpoints. – TSA press release

But in fact a senior British official hinted that an attack was not imminent, saying that the suspects had not purchased any airline tickets, some did not even have passports. Another little tidbit they left out was that some of these “plotters” were known to the British security services even before the London subway bombings which occurred last year.

In short this plot had absolutely no chance of success and wasn’t a real threat, and the Bush Administration knew that when they raised the terror alert levels and instigated a renewal of the publics fear in order to influence the political landscape.

A TSA supervisor and trainer was quoted in the opinion section of The Leaf Chronicle today as stating the following facts about the agency.

• Liquid explosives are not new. The concept was tested in the Bojinka terrorist plot in 1994 and was successful. Introduction aboard aircraft is still a significant threat with an extremely high probability of success. TSA has known about this threat since its inception.
• TSA did not address definitive actions to prevent explosives from being carried on passengers through checkpoints until two Russian aircraft were destroyed by suicide bombers using explosive vests. The response was a torso pat down. Passenger-carried explosives are still a significant threat. TSA has known about this threat for years.
• Numerous nonstandard explosive/incendiary devices and employment methods exist now that present a significant introduction threat with very little chance of detection. TSA has known about this for years

He dismissed shoulder-fired missiles totally saying only that the TSA has no defense against these.

In the end he concluded with:

My point? Simple. TSA knows terrorists think outside the box, yet the TSA refuses to attempt to out think the bad guys, preferring to wait until something happens before they act. Multiple threats are still out there, still viable, and will likely not be fixed until a bunch of people die. – Sam Smith, The Leaf Chronicle Letters to the Editor

As for having to remove your shoes and have them x-rayed, In a April 2005 report entitled: “Systems Engineering Study of Civil Aviation Security — Phase I,” the Homeland Security Department concluded that images on X-ray machines don’t provide the information necessary to detect explosives. They are now trying to claim otherwise.

In the end removing your shoes and having them x-rayed is all a dog and pony show to make the public feel safer about flying.

It’s time to fight back

My suggestion until they stop trying to manipulate your fears, do not fly. It’s not worth the hassle, and having to surrender your civil liberties. If enough people stop flying, the airlines will scream bloody murder, and then we will get some common sense in how airline security is handled in this country.

Politicians like to ask “Are you safer today than you were 5 years ago?” My answer is maybe not, but you are not any more at risk either.

In November, vote out of your hopes, not your fears, and by doing so show the Republicans that “We the People” will not allow them use our fears (Terrorism, Immigration, and Gay Marriage) as a tools to enable them to control us.

There is an old saying, “Fool me once, Shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Don’t allow yourself to be fooled by George Bush and the Republicans again.

This week, Deroy gives the readers certain facts of WMD’s found in Iraq and the subsequent lack of coverage by the “liberal press”. Deroy is out to convince us that over 500 ‘lethal’ WMD’s have been found. These lethal, dangerous weapons were built in 1989, and have been buried for over a decade. Deroy and the newspaper waste 1/5 of the Op-ed page rehashing Peter Hoekstra’s (R-Mich) and Rick Santorum (R-Mich) parading a misleading report of found WMD’s.

Fox News’ Jim Angle contacted the Defense Department who quickly disavowed Santorum and Hoekstra’s claims. A Defense Department official told Angle flatly that the munitions hyped by Santorum and Hoekstra are “not the WMD’s for which this country went to war.”  – Think Progress

Please note that this information was brought up conveniently just prior to the Senate debate about a timetable to exit Iraq. Jane Harman (D-Calif.) said the following: “What worries me is that the intelligence community — Ambassador Negroponte in particular — may be playing a partisan role in the 2006 election.”

Deroy nor the newspaper provided that information. Nor did Deroy or the paper provide these informative quotes on the topic:

David Kay, Former Top US Weapons Inspector – “It (found WMD’s) is less toxic than most things that Americans have under their kitchen sink at this point.” and “And any of Iraq’s 1980s-era mustard would produce burns, but it is unlikely to be lethal.”

Unfortunately for Santorum and Hoekstra, the shells weren’t part of Saddam’s illusory stockpile of WMD. Rather, they were artifacts of the Iran-Iraq war, during which Saddam (helped, incidentally, by the Reagan administration) acquired chemical weapons – The New Republic

Maybe the ‘liberal press’ did not report on the report because it was not news. Who would seem to be the most knowledgeable about WMD’s – Republicans locked in an unpopular war looking for reelection in a few months or the retired top US weapons inspector ? Who do you think has the least likely hood of promoting a not so hidden agenda through promoting this report – Republicans locked in an unpopular war looking for reelection in a few months or the retired top US weapons inspector ?

Again (like last week), I call for readers to let the paper know that we want to read the news, based on all the facts. We want an Op-ed section that is not a platform solely for republican talking points. Demand a real fair and balance presentation of varying opinions that are based on all the facts.

I would like to conclude with a quote from Hoekstra and Santorum’s report, “If the American public can be deceived by people who withhold basic information, we risk losing the war at home, even if we win it on the battlefield.” I think that says it all (by the way Deroy nor the paper used that quote either).

Websites:

• http://forums.backpage.com/showthread.php?t=10925
• http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20060610/msgs/660267.html
• http://www.tnr.com/doc.mhtml?i=w060710&s=ackerman071306

In “Estate Tax Hurts Black Americans” (Leaf Chronicle July 9), Mr. Deroy Murdock quotes a study that showed that 90% of black business owners “believed” the estate tax hindered long term growth prospects. What people ‘believe’ is irrelevant in the tax code, however, it is a convenient way to spin the issue.

Mr. Murdock omits any facts about the tax, except for the rates – which is irrelevant to 98% of Americans. Per the IRS website (1), “In its current form, the estate tax only affects the wealthiest 2% of all Americans”, because it only effects estates with a net worth greater than $2 million dollars.

Let’s look at this in context, something Mr. Murdock does not do:

- In 1998, the average net worth of the top 1% of Americans was $10,204,000 and the average net worth of the bottom 40% was $19,400, a difference of 525% (2)

- 90% of US stocks are owned by the wealthiest 10% of Americans

Mr. Murdock sprinkles morsels of facts within his article that are severed from reality of the topic. And this web of spin was presented with no opposing view. You might say that this letter, if published, would be the lacking voice of opposition. But my letter to the local editor is limited in size, and if published would be days after Mr. Murdock’s national published opinion.

As a subscriber, I would like to see the opinion page address a topic with a healthy debate of issues that includes all the facts and ideas from all sides so that readers can be well informed and make well informed decisions.

(1) http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,108143,00.html

(2) www.pbs.org/peoplelikeus/resources/stats.html

On June 21, our two multi-millionaire U.S. senators from Tennessee, Lamar Alexander and Bill Frist, voted “no” again on a bill to increase the minimum wage. I find this appalling.

Growing up on a small farm in Tennessee, it was impressed upon me that hard work was not only expected but also is an important character trait. I think most people agree that no one in the United States who works full time for a living should have to live in poverty. To me, that means they can afford basic housing, groceries (not including meals out), needed health care, child care and other necessities.

According to most polls, Americans from all social, regional and political parties overwhelmingly support an increase in the minimum wage — 82 percent by a survey in 2005 (see people-press.org). Aren’t politicians constantly claiming to support the views of their constituents? Support for an increase in the minimum wage has remained above 80 percent since this question was asked in 1998. The last increase was from $4.75 to $5.15 in 1997.

As a clever smoke screen, we’re told that this will have a negative effect on business and the economy. Do you believe that this issue primarily affects teenagers? About 70 percent of minimum wage earners are adults age 20 or older; over half are 25 or older. The reality is that many households depend on minimum-wage workers for a substantial portion of their income.

Recently, Tennessee attempted but failed to raise the state minimum wage. Did your county representative vote against a fair shake for working people?

Please don’t take my word on this issue. Explore the information for yourself: http://www.ceprdata.org/. Hard work should be rewarded with a living wage.

BETH ROBINSON
Clarksville 37043